Senseless
by tamilnadu09
Summary: When Elijah offers Elena a way to reclaim her humanity, she must decide if the sacrifice is worth it...or if becoming a vampire was her destiny all along. Post 3x22. A season 4 canon fic. D/E
1. Control

**A/N: **YAY new fic! I actually wasn't planning on writing a S4-canon fic this summer, but I realized that (at this point) it's pretty much tradition ;)

* * *

In all the time that she had known of their existence, they (each and every one of them) had tried to describe to her—over and over again—what it was like to be a vampire.

_'Senses are heightened…'_

_'Personality is amplified…'_

_'The thirst…'_

_'…Blood.'_

Elena closed her eyes and decided to focus on the first statement.

Senses.

Well, there was the enhanced hearing.

Like that police siren two blocks away—she wouldn't have been able to hear that as a human. A small smile quirked her lips as she remembered pointing out that fact to Jeremy, and his bantering response, "Like Spiderman?"

Too bad that instead of saving the people in trouble, she'd be more likely to rip their throats out.

Elena quickly shook her head to dispel the unsavory thoughts. Okay, moving on to the next sense…

Her eyes popped open to take in the scenery. Sight.

Sure, she'd had 20/20 vision before, but now…everything was clear to the point of sharpness. As if to prove the point, her eyesight honed in on the little girl on the other side of the large pond who had just fallen off her bike.

Elena tilted her head, the girl's wailing reaching her ears at a perfectly reasonable volume—as if she was right next to her, instead of a couple hundred feet away. "Mommy, it hurts!"

The mother rushed forward, kneeling down to help her daughter stand up. "It's okay, baby," she soothed, "It's just a scrape, it'll heal in no time."

Elena took a step forward in spite of herself. She couldn't see the scrape, but…

Oh yes, the third sense.

Smell.

She had quickly learned that everyone—and not just humans, but even other vampires, werewolves, witches, and hybrids—all carried a unique aura around them. She could finally understand why it was nearly impossible to sneak up on a vampire.

Right now, however, all she could smell was the blood.

_Not good._

Elena quickly turned around to face the trees behind her instead, and gulped in mouthfuls of unnecessary air.

She needed to focus on something else, anything else…Oh, the fourth sense! Elena thought frantically until it finally hit her. The answer was obvious, of course.

Taste.

She could still eat—anything that she wanted. But it didn't matter.

Because the only thing that she craved was blood. Everything about it called out to her, tempted her…

And it was never enough.

Interestingly enough, she had learned quite a lot about blood over the past week. For instance, she now knew that there were eight different types for humans (A+, O+, B+, AB+, A-, O-, B-, AB-), and that they all tasted slightly different from one another.

She had yet to find a favorite, because right now all she could care about was quenching the ever-present thirst.

_I wonder what blood type that little girl is…_

Her mouth curled up in distaste at her inner thoughts.

The fifth sense…what was it?

She thought for a second, tightly squeezing her eyes shut to drown out the world around her. There were so many heartbeats, so many noises, it was too much…her nails dug into the palms of her hands and she flinched.

Touch.

She could just _feel_ so much more—when she walked, it was like the air particles fluttered across her skin. When she ran, there was no resistance. When she…

Try as she might, she couldn't block out Damon's recent "lessons" from evading her mind. Over the past week, he had taken it upon himself to teach her how to successfully adjust to her newly enhanced five senses. The other four had all related to controlling the blood lust somehow, but the fifth sense (touch)—that one had been different.

Subconsciously she licked her lips, still feeling the pressure of his mouth on hers. It had been different from their other kisses. This one, she had felt almost this intense need rising up in her—a need to deepen the kiss, a need to feel his hands on her body, a need to…

Her head whipped around, hearing the wisps of an argument.

"…of course I blame myself! How could I not?"

She sighed wearily and sped off into the woods towards the sounds of raised voices.

* * *

Stefan paced back and forth, glancing every so often towards the pond in the distance. "How does it look like it's going?"

Damon was standing in the center of the clearing, his arms crossed. "She's facing the woods...her eyes are shut. She looks like she's in pain." His words were flat, his voice detached. "How do you think it's going?"

"But she hasn't run off and tried to attack anybody, right?" Stefan asked anxiously, "She looks like she's in control?"

"Obviously, or we wouldn't be standing here and discussing it, would we?"

"There's just a lot of people hanging around the pond today...I thought it would be less crowded," he fretted. "This must be overwhelming for her."

"Overwhelming or not, she needs to learn how to be around people." Damon held up a hand before Stefan could respond, "And I mean regular people. The eating, breathing, heart-beating, kind."

Stefan nodded, staring off into the distance. "At least she's comfortable sleeping in her own home. She trusts herself not to attack Jeremy."

"That hardly counts," Damon grumbled, "For starters, Jeremy is just one person—and secondly, he's still wearing that ring. In the back of her mind, she knows that she can't REALLY hurt him. He's like her safety net."

"She'll learn," Stefan glanced at his brother and added seriously, "It's not like there's a shortage of role models for her to look up to."

Damon raised an eyebrow, "Look at you, finally cracking a smile. I was beginning to think that the 'martyr' look had become a permanent fixture on your face."

"Very funny, Damon," he moved away and resumed his pacing, "It's not like you've been your usual sarcastic, one-liner self either."

"Yeah, well, I've kind of had a lot on mind."

Stefan made a noncommittal noise.

"Tell me something," Damon said suddenly, "You hate yourself for letting this happen to her—I mean the fact that she's a vampire, the one thing that she never wanted to become...You hate that her humanity was ripped away from her without her consent. Right?"

His brother stopped and stared at him, his shoulders tensing. "Yes, Damon. We've already been through this."

"So you blame yourself for what she's become."

"Of course I blame myself! How could I not?"

"But," Damon pushed himself off the tree he had been lounging on and walked towards Stefan. "Tell me this. If she didn't have vampire blood in her system—that is, if she had actually fully died with no way of coming back—you would've also blamed yourself. Correct?"

"Because I let her drown," Stefan said quietly, "Because I had to let her make her choice...even if it killed her." He straightened and met Damon's gaze, "So yes, I would've blamed myself then too."

"So no matter what the outcome was, you would've blamed yourself," Damon nodded to himself and turned away, "I guess you do enjoy eternal misery."

"That's not fair, Damon," Stefan shot back angrily, "How would you feel if—"

"Hey, you don't think I blame myself?" Damon growled, "Because I tried to save Rebekah's life? If I had just let Ric kill her then maybe..." His voice broke, and he briefly closed his eyes against the pain associated with bringing up Alaric. He was usually so careful about not mentioning his name...

"After all this time," Elena's voice interrupted his reverie, "You two are still blaming yourselves for my choices."

Stefan frowned, "How much of that did you hear?"

"Enough to know that you're living with this unnecessary guilt. Both of you."

"Elena..."

"No, listen to me," she interrupted, "It was neither of your faults that I drowned. You two weren't the ones that caused the car to go over the bridge. That was all Rebekah, okay? It was ALL her."

"But—"

"And yes," she continued, "There were probably a million events that could've prevented Rebekah from being on that bridge at that time. A million events that we will never know, and a million events that we can no longer change." She stared pointedly at Damon until he met her gaze, and she waited until he had nodded in acknowledgement before she turned towards Stefan. "It was my choice to ask you to save Matt. When my parents drowned, my father took that choice away from me—about whether I should live or die." She smiled at him sadly, "I couldn't be selfish. I had to give that chance to someone else this time, do you understand?"

Damon nodded at Stefan, "So what is it about her?"

"Excuse me?"

"The traits that got amplified," he elaborated, exchanging a reluctant smile with Elena, "Which of her traits was it?"

Stefan opened his mouth to answer, but another voice interrupted him before he could speak.

"I think I can answer that."

All three of them whirled around to assess the new arrival. Damon's expression immediately slipped into a warning glare, and he and Stefan both took a step forward so that they were standing in front of Elena. However, she didn't attempt to move forward, and merely gazed at the vampire standing before them. "Elijah."


	2. Humanity

**reminder: **Klaus is IN Tyler's body.

* * *

"It's not that I'm, like, offended or anything," Caroline said to Tyler as they walked through the woods towards their new (albeit isolated) home. "But I mean, I'm the one that did just recently go through all of this." She paused, waiting for some sort of response, and scowled when she didn't get any. "Tyler! Are you even listening to me?"

"Yes, of course," Klaus agreed quickly, turning to look at her with a smile. "You have my full attention, Caroline. Always."

"Well, good," she slowed her pace and took both of his hands within hers, "Because right now, it's just you and me. Do you get that? We can never go back to our homes, not unless we want to be killed on the spot by the Council—"

He looked at her seriously and abruptly pulled her forward so that she was pressed against his chest. She didn't look startled by the move, and merely gazed up at him with trusting eyes. Klaus hid a smirk and stroked her hair gently, "I know, Caroline, I know. But don't you think this would be a lot easier on both of us if we just…I don't know…left town? There are so many places we could go, so many places that neither of us have seen…"

"Yeah, yeah," she pulled herself out of his grip and sighed, "Paris, London, Sydney, a million other cities and countries…you've said it all before." She took a few steps away from him and stared at the sky for a second, "But you get why we can't leave Mystic Falls right now, don't you?"

Klaus nodded, keeping his eyes trained on the ground, "Because of Elena."

"Yes," she threw her hands up, "Because my best friend—the girl who did everything she could to keep everyone else alive—has been turned into a vampire." She viciously kicked out at a large branch lying beside her feet and it flew several hundred feet before smashing against a tree. "I swear to god, if I ever see Rebekah again, I'll kill her with my own two hands."

Klaus glared at her, "Don't say things like that. You'll only get yourself killed."

"What? You don't think I could take her?" Caroline flipped her hair over her shoulder as she began stomping away, "You know what? Whatever. Alaric should've killed her when he had the chance...damn Damon for saving her life."

"Don't be angry, Caroline," Klaus swung her around so that he could meet her gaze, "You know I'm only concerned with your safety. The Council already has a price tag on your head; you don't need Rebekah to be hunting you down, too."

She sagged in his arms and slumped forward so that she could rest her head against his chest. "I just wish it wasn't so difficult all the time," she murmured, "It's like no matter what I do, someone around me is always dying or on the run or…" Caroline trailed off and snuggled into Tyler, "Do you have any idea how happy I am that you're still alive?"

Klaus let his fingers trail over her bare shoulders and responded suggestively, "We could always go back to the house so you could show me just how grateful you are…"

She let out an exasperated laugh as Klaus suddenly swept her off her feet, and she looped her arms around his neck to hold on as he began speeding through the woods. Several minutes later, he came to a stop outside their new home, and he loosened his grip so that Caroline could jump onto the ground.

She took his hand as they both began walking up the stairs, "At least Klaus told you about his secret house before he died. I mean, who would've thought that he had this place stashed away in the middle of the woods right outside Mystic Falls?"

Klaus kept his expression carefully blank, "I'm sure he had many secrets."

"Yeah, like how we're all still alive if he's the one that started our bloodline..." she trailed off thoughtfully, "Hmm, maybe there was a witch involved."

"What?" he turned to look at her sharply, "What do you mean?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. I mean, maybe some pissed off witch somewhere cut him off from his own bloodline or something."

"Right," Klaus replied uneasily, grabbing her hand to pull her inside, "Come on, let's get out of the open before someone sees us."

"As if anyone comes down here," Caroline rolled her eyes, "We haven't seen anyone all week."

"Your friends know where you are," Klaus reminded her, "They probably haven't come to visit because they don't want to lead any Council members to our hiding spot."

She sighed bitterly, "I know, I know. I just wish Elena had at least come to see me. I could've helped her through the transition."

"Damon and Stefan will be taking good care of her," Klaus reassured her, "And we know that Bonnie already made her a daylight ring."

"True," Caroline agreed reluctantly, and she was about to step into the house when she paused, some distant voices reaching her ears. "Wait," she grabbed Tyler's arm, "Do you hear that?"

Klaus turned back and walked to the edge of the porch, frowning when he also heard voices arguing. Before he could react, a figure blurred past him, heading towards the sounds. "Caroline!" he hissed in alarm, before taking off after her. He caught up with her within seconds and growled angrily, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

She raised a finger to her lips and tilted her head to the right. Klaus quickly looked around their surroundings, assessing the situation. Although they still couldn't see anyone, the voices were more clear now. He listened for a second, stiffening when he recognized one of the voices in particular. Forgetting himself, he blurted out, "Is that my broth—"

Thankfully, Caroline didn't appear to have heard him. "Oh my god," she whispered, "I think that's Elijah's voice!"

* * *

"I thought you left town."

"I did," Elijah made it clear he was only speaking to her, "But I returned when I learned what had happened."

Damon shoved ahead so that he was blocking Elijah's view of Elena. "As if we haven't heard that one before," he snapped, "Let me give you a piece of advice—next time you leave, you sure as hell better never look back. You and your psychotic relatives have done nothing but bring bloodshed and death to this town, and I swear to god the next time I see any of you—"

"I understand why you must be upset."

"Upset?" Damon chuckled darkly as he turned to look at Stefan, "Are you hearing this? Elijah thinks we're UPSET."

Stefan crossed his arms, his expression remaining stoic. "Oh come on Damon, it's been an entire week since Elijah left town. Perhaps he doesn't know the full story."

"Oh you want the full story?" Damon sneered, "Okay, here's the version of events your dear sister probably failed to mention—"

Elijah held up a hand, "I know what Rebekah did." He looked down at the ground for a full moment, and when he looked back up, his expression was sorrowful. "Elena, I had no idea what she was going to do. Trust me, had I known, I never would have allowed her to perform such a despicable act."

"Trust?" Damon scoffed, "Every single time you've blown through this town, you ask us to trust you, and it has NEVER done us any good."

Elena finally spoke then, moving around Damon so that she could face Elijah herself. "I don't doubt your words," she said to him evenly, "I believe that keeping me alive has always been important to you."

"Then you understand—"

"I also understand that all of you are selfish." Elena shook her head when she saw he was about to interrupt, "It's not a bad thing. On the contrary, selfishness is a very human trait. And for you Originals to still have humanity within you after thousands of years is certainly remarkable."

He frowned, "What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that Damon and Stefan are right. You need to leave town, and you need to never come back." She swallowed, "There's no reason for you to stay—Klaus is dead...and in any case, he wouldn't have been able to use my blood anymore. Alaric is gone, rendering the last of Esther's plan to purge the world of vampires useless. Tyler is fine, and so is anyone who was supposedly from Klaus' bloodline." Elena shrugged, "See? We're all doing fine."

He didn't react to her words, but his expression softened, "Except you're a vampire."

She flinched.

Elijah took several steps forward until he could take her hands within his own, ignoring both Damon and Stefan's warning looks. "I know that Damon tried to save Rebekah's life when Alaric was going to kill her. And I know that she got scared and did the only thing that made sense to her at the time—she did the only thing she could to get rid of someone who was a threat to her and our family."

Elena met his gaze impassively, "Like I said before, I understand why she did what she did. But just because I understand, doesn't mean that I will ever forgive her for tearing my humanity away from me without a single thought." Her eyes filled with tears against her will but she didn't bother to wipe them away. "A million decisions have led us all to this point," she stated quietly, "And there's nothing you can do to take back what has happened...No matter how many apologies you make on Rebekah's behalf, it won't change anything." Her voice wavered then, "Let me go, Elijah."

He released her hands reluctantly, and she turned away from all of them. Her vision blurred as the tears spilled onto her cheeks, and before she knew it, strong arms were pulling her forward. She didn't even have to look up to know who was embracing her, and she tiredly rested her head on Damon's shoulder. "Can you take me home now?" she asked wearily, "I think we've done enough training for today."

"Of course," he replied in an uncharacteristically gentle voice. He glanced over at Stefan as he spoke, "The boarding house or your home?"

"Boarding house," she whispered, "I don't want Jeremy to see me like this."

Damon stroked her hair, "He would understand."

Elena shook her head and mumbled into his shirt incoherently, "I have to be strong for him..."

"Alright," he shifted her so that he could wrap one arm around her waist and prop her up. "Well Elijah, I would say it's been nice seeing you but that would be a lie. Hope you settle down somewhere far, far away and find other innocent people's lives to ruin. Ready to go, Stefan?"

Stefan nodded and began following his brother, when abruptly Elijah reached out to grab his arm. "If you truly love her, you will make her listen to what I have to say."

He stared back at Elijah coldly, "And if you know Elena at all, you'll know that I can't 'make' her do anything."

"Stefan, what's the hold up?" Damon called over his shoulder impatiently, "Stop making small talk with the bunnies and let's get out of here."

"Elijah claims that he has something important to tell Elena."

"Of course he does," Damon groaned as Elena stopped walking, "Come on, we don't have to listen to him."

She laid a hand on his arm and said in a placating tone, "He came all this way for something, Damon. We owe it to him to at least hear him out."

"We don't owe him anything."

Elena sighed and turned around, "What is it?"

He gave her a faint smile, "Ironic, isn't it?" When she looked confused, he elaborated, "To answer Damon's earlier question—your traits that have been amplified? It's undoubtedly your humanity, Elena. Your compassion..."

'_Your compassion is a gift, Elena. Carry it with you, as I will carry my regret...'_

"Is that what you wanted to tell me?"

Elijah shook his head and then folded his hands together, "You were right when you said there's nothing that can be done to change what has happened. Once a human dies and chooses to become a vampire, there's no turning back."

"Thank you for that brand new information," Damon muttered under his breath, "Is that all?"

"But you...You were the doppelganger. You've never exactly been human."

Elena raised an eyebrow, "Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"No," he shook his head, "What I'm saying is...well, the rules don't really apply to you, do they?"

She straightened, now paying attention. Damon narrowed his eyes.

"Before my mother died, she told me about a rumor she had heard," Elijah went on quietly, his gaze intensely upon hers. "A way to preserve the doppelganger's humanity..."

* * *

_*added author's note: This fic isn't necessarily about Elena becoming human again; it's more about FINDING a way to turn her back, and the journey and choices she has to make along the way.  
_


	3. Been There, Done That

_I never knew daylight could be so violent  
A revelation in the light of day  
You can't choose what stays  
...and what fades away_

* * *

"Elena has been down in the basement for quite a while," Elijah commented, "Is she alright?"

"Oh, excellent point...Perhaps she's down there being murdered by Rebekah—oh wait, my mistake," Damon glared, "That already happened."

"That's enough," Stefan said tiredly, "I think Elijah gets it. We're pissed."

"Pissed?" Damon snorted derisively as he took a swig of whiskey, "I don't think that covers the extent of my current feelings about this situation."

Elijah stood up in the silence that followed and poured himself a glass of wine. He took a slow sip, regarding the two brothers over the rim of his glass. "Thank you for allowing us to move this discussion into your home. You never know who—or what—may be lurking in these woods."

"The only things prowling around the woods these days are those damn Council members," Damon said bitterly, "Hunting for signs of Caroline and Tyler."

"Yes, I heard about that," Elijah replied delicately, "Is there not anything that can be done to dissuade them?"

"You mean besides killing them all?"

"I was hoping you would suggest something a little less extreme."

Stefan shook his head, "My brother is right. The Council knows the truth now, and they'll stop at nothing to get rid of what they see as a threat."

"Kind of like Rebekah now, aren't they?"

Elijah glanced up at Damon and acknowledged, "Perhaps."

"So what, exactly? You want to kill them? Or are you going to help us kill Rebekah?"

"More than half of my family is dead," Elijah responded sharply, "I will not aid in the killing of my sister. She and Kol are all I have left."

"Like we should care about your family after what they've done!"

Elijah got to his feet abruptly, his normally emotionless façade flickering. "I repeat, where is Elena?"

"She's downstairs," Stefan answered impatiently, "She was hungry."

"And you keep your blood supply in the basement, I know," Elijah spread an arm out to gesture to the living room, "Why can't she simply bring the blood packets up here and join us?"

Damon exchanged a glance with Stefan before responding evasively, "She has her reasons. But if it'll get you out of Mystic Falls quicker, then I'll go and get her."

"That's not necessary," Elijah offered, "I can go fetch her myself."

"Yeah, I don't think so."

* * *

"Elena?" Damon called out cautiously as he entered the basement. He could see the freezer door was open, but she was nowhere in sight. "Are you down here?"  
There was no response, but he paused when he heard an odd shuffling sound coming from the back corner. He tensed, poised to attack as he took silent footsteps in that direction.

Several moments later, he discovered what the source of the noise was.

Elena was huddled against the back wall, half-empty blood packets surrounding the ground around her. When she noticed him standing there, she groaned and turned her face away. "No," she whimpered, "Please go away, Damon."

He knelt down and picked up the nearest blood packet, examining it with critical eyes. "You didn't even fully drink from it," he said, tossing it back onto the ground and straightening. "I thought you were hungry."

"I was," she wiped her arm against her mouth disgustedly and scoffed, "What am I saying? I'm always hungry. It doesn't matter how much I drink, or how many stupid lessons you drag me on. It doesn't change anything."

Damon nodded and reached out with his arm to pull her up, but she only swatted him away and scuffled deeper into her corner. He sighed and used his boot to brush a pile of packets out of the way so that he could sit down next to her. "Elena, look at me."

She covered her face with her hands and shook her head, "I don't want you to see me like this."

"Like what?" He let his fingers curl around her wrist and gently tugged it away from her face, "Like a vampire? News flash, Elena. Been there, done that."

Elena let her other hand drop to her lap, but stayed hidden in her corner. "You don't understand, you were never...you didn't..."

"Lose control? Don't be so naive, Elena." Damon let go of her wrist, but didn't attempt to shift closer to her. Instead, he leaned his head back against the stone wall and stared up at the ceiling thoughtfully. "We're all vampires here, you know. You don't have to hide. Stefan and I have been helping you since you transitioned a week ago. We've seen you at your lowest point...trust me, this isn't it."

"Then what was it?" she asked quietly, "You don't think that after a whole week I should be able to handle my emotions better?"

Damon didn't say anything for a minute. When he finally spoke, it was clear he was choosing his words carefully. "Your lowest point wasn't when you woke up, and it wasn't when you realized you were transitioning. Hell, it wasn't even when you told Jeremy or your friends what had happened."

Curiosity getting the better of her, Elena turned to look at Damon. She examined his expression, and was surprised to see the amount of pain barely concealed in his features. "What was it?" she asked again, "Damon?"

"The second day," he bit out, "The day you decided to go see Matt in the hospital."

Elena blanched and quickly looked away. "I thought we had a deal," she said unsteadily, "You were never to bring that day up again."

"You asked," he replied softly, hesitantly reaching over to stroke the palm of her hand. To his relief, she didn't pull away. "Matt tried to kill himself when he learned that you had given up your chance to live for him. That amount of emotional trauma would have an effect on anybody, Elena. And yes, those effects would certainly last longer than a week."

She sucked in a shaky breath, "Matt has been through more than his fair share of supernatural occurrences because of me. And he's been strong through all of it. Up until now."

"Maybe leaving town was the best thing for him," Damon tightened his grip on her hand, "He needed time, Elena. Like you said, he's been through a lot."

"I guess you're right," she said in a small voice, "It just hurts, knowing that he's gone. And then Bonnie..." She shook her head, "It just feels like everyone is disappearing out of my life, and there's not a thing I can do about it because, well, it's all my fault anyway."

"Don't say that," Damon said fiercely, suddenly getting to his feet and pulling her up with him. She looked startled as she tried to gain her balance, but he grasped her shoulders before she could say anything. "Yes, Bonnie and Matt left town because they needed time to process what had happened. And yes, Caroline and Tyler have basically been outcasted from Mystic Falls...but you could've still visited them, Elena."

"No, I couldn't," Elena snapped, "I knew you wouldn't understand."

"Understand what?" Damon raised his voice, "Tell me! We can't help you if you don't let us in!"

"It's me, alright?" she finally shouted, frustrated. "People expect me to be in control, and to make the right decisions, and to be caring and moral, and all these things that don't even feel like ME anymore! And I can't, I just can't do it!"

Damon could only stare at her incredulously.

"And now you know," Elena stared down at her feet, ashamed. "You know why I haven't tried to visit Caroline, why I didn't try to stop Matt and Bonnie from leaving, why I didn't want Elijah to stay in town..." She tried to move away, but Damon didn't let go of her. "They all expect me to be something I'm not."

More silence.

Then...

"Did becoming a vampire damage your brain cells or something?"

Elena's head snapped up furiously, "You—"

"No, you listen," Damon shook her shoulders roughly, "You're still all of those things that make you who you are, Elena. No one is expecting you to be anything else. And no one is expecting you to be perfect after just one week of training. It took Caroline a hell of a lot longer than that, you know that."

"I know, but—"

He interrupted, "So can we talk about what's really going on here?"

She looked at him, confused, "What do you mean?"

"You were doing fine, Elena. After the first couple of days, after you made the conscious decision to complete the transition, after you had accepted your fate...you were fine. You learned how to hunt animals in the woods, you learned how to use your new abilities, you were learning how to control the bloodlust. But something changed today...what was it?"

"I fantasized about ripping into a little girl's throat," Elena hissed at him angrily, "I couldn't handle being around all those people at the pond. It was too much, I wasn't ready!"

"You _were _ready," Damon responded calmly, "I know you were. Everything was fine up until Elijah got here. Is it because he said he wants to save your humanity? I told you that we didn't have to listen to any more of his crackpot ideas...This is probably just like that elixir business from when Klaus wanted to sacrifice you. It doesn't mean anything."

"That's just it," she whispered, finally looking up and meeting his gaze. "I had accepted my fate. I had accepted that I was never going to grow old and have children. I would watch from the sidelines as Jeremy and Bonnie and Matt graduated from high school and moved on with their lives. They would go to college and get jobs and be whatever the hell they wanted to be." Her voice became bitter, "I had accepted that I would stay behind in Mystic Falls and forever be the next Katherine in the Salvatore brothers lives. After all, it's not like I can have kids and produce another doppelganger."

"Is that what you really think?"

"I only speak the truth," Elena shot back, "You can't deny it."

"So what changed? If you've already accepted what you are, then we can go upstairs right now and tell Elijah to get the hell out of here."

"It's too late," she smiled sadly, "Because now there's a tiny part of me hoping that he's found a way to reverse all this. And even if it doesn't work, I have to try, you know?"

"Yeah," Damon stroked her cheek with his thumb, "I know." He pulled her into his arms then and sighed into her hair, "I don't want you to get your hopes up for when this turns out to be the proverbial needle in the haystack."

"I won't," Elena murmured, pulling back slightly but lingering close enough so that he could see the unshed tears glistening in her eyes. He saw her gaze drop to his lips, but a minute later she still hadn't moved.

The corner of Damon's mouth lifted, "What, does it always have to be me?"

She frowned, "That's not true. We're even."

He raised an amused eyebrow, "Nice try, but I kissed you while we were training...or did you forget?"

"I didn't forget," Elena replied instantly, looking chastised, "But you said you were teaching me the five senses. It doesn't count."

"Oh trust me, it counts." He leaned forward and brushed his lips against her neck, "As you can see, I could've done any number of things to show you how the whole enhanced feeling and touch sense works..." His fingers drummed lazily down her bare arms and rested momentarily on her waist. Then, watching her expression from the corner of his eye, he let his hand slip under her loose-fitting top and stroked her skin enticingly.

She shivered, her eyes closing and her lips parting instinctively.

Damon smirked to himself and let his fingers go an inch or two higher. He knew he was dangerously close to crossing the already-blurred line, but pushing the limit had always been his strong suit...

He moved his lips from her neck and traced a path to her ear, "Have I made my point?"

"Yes," she gasped out, her eyes flying open and darkening with a hitherto unseen lust. Damon barely had time to revel in his victory before her arm blurred past him and wrapped itself around his neck to wrench him forward. Their lips aligned perfectly as her mouth closed over his frantically, pouring out an unadulterated amount of frustration and heat and tension and every other emotion that had ever sizzled between them.


	4. Transition

**A/N: **this chapter goes through the events that happened during the one week period between when chapter 1 began, and when episode 3x22 ended.

* * *

Elijah walked back into the living room and eyed Stefan for a minute, "Walk me through that day."

"Excuse me?"

"Last week, when Elena became a vampire. I want you to tell me everything that happened that day. And everything that has happened since."

Stefan frowned and glanced from Elijah to the basement door, "Weren't you about to go downstairs and get Elena?"

"Yes, I was," he sounded mildly irritated, "But she appears to be otherwise occupied."

"With Damon."

"Yes," Elijah took another sip of wine, "I assume that means you have given up on fighting for her?"

"I love her," Stefan corrected, "But it's her choice. Always has been."

"Of course," Elijah paused before asking again, "So what happened that day?"

"I thought you said Rebekah already told you."

"She told me what she had done to protect our family, yes. But I would like to hear the full story from you."

Stefan sighed, "Matt had decided that Elena needed to get out of town to be safe, but he knew she would never agree to it. So he drugged her, loaded her up in his car and started driving."

"I imagine she wasn't too pleased when she woke up," Elijah surmised, "Especially when she learned that Klaus had been staked and that everyone from his bloodline would soon be meeting their death."

"Tyler, Caroline, and myself were here in Mystic Falls," Stefan explained, "Damon was not."

"I see."

"Apparently she told Matt to turn the car around and head back home."

Elijah's expression flickered with surprise, "To you?"

"Home," Stefan repeated, "To her friends." Then his eyes narrowed, "Except she never got here, of course. Because of Rebekah." When Elijah didn't respond, Stefan continued, "Matt said he swerved the car on instinct and it went over the bridge. When I found them, Elena was still conscious. She..." He trailed off and then cleared his throat, "She told me to save Matt first."

"And you respected her wishes," Elijah said thoughtfully, "I wouldn't have expected anything less."

"Would you have done the same thing?" Stefan asked suddenly, "If it had been you who had found her?"

Elijah didn't hesitate, "Yes. I would have chosen to save Matt if she has asked me to. But Klaus would've chosen to save Elena. He's always been similar to Damon in that aspect, wouldn't you agree?"

"No, I wouldn't agree," Stefan replied shortly, "See, the difference is that Klaus would've saved Elena just because he sees her as his personal human blood bag. Damon would've saved Elena because..."

"Because he loves her."

Stefan nodded silently.

"Alright, so what happened after you saved Matt?"

"I went back down to get Elena," his voice grew hoarse, "And I knew she was already dead, but I took her to the hospital anyway." He swallowed, "Damon showed up about an hour later. That's when Meredith told us that she had given Elena vampire blood earlier...that it would still be in her system."

"What did Elena say when she woke up?"

Stefan gave a small smile, "The first words out of her mouth were 'How is Matt? Is he alive?'"

"Sounds like Elena."

"She was pretty quiet while we explained what had happened," Stefan went on, his expression becoming glazed. "She was calmer than I expected her to be. There were a few tears of course, and she kept apologizing for something..."

"Apologizing to Damon?"

Stefan frowned, "I don't know."

"When did she make the decision to complete the transition?"

"She almost didn't have to think about it...said that she was all Jeremy had left, and she couldn't be selfish and not transition."

Elijah smiled faintly, "Again, sounds like Elena."

"The next morning, Bonnie made her a daylight ring. Then she stuck around for Alaric's funeral in the afternoon before leaving town. Caroline and Tyler watched from woods...Alaric outed their true identities to the Founder's Council, so now they're being hunted—"

"Excuse me?" Elijah looked up sharply, "You let your witch leave town? How could you let that happen?"

"She's not 'our' witch," Stefan retorted, "It was her choice to leave. And after everything that has happened to the people around her, I completely understand her decision." He shook his head, "Anyway, later that night, we went to visit Matt in the hospital. That...went pretty badly, on the whole. He was devastated that his plan to save her almost resulted in both of their deaths. He left town a couple days later."

Elijah raised an eyebrow, "Elena is doing remarkably well for someone whose entire support network has been turned upside down."

"For the rest of the week Damon and I trained her. He's been teaching her how use her new abilities, and I taught her how to hunt in the woods. Today was the first time she attempted to immerse herself in a crowd of other people. After all, that's pretty much the only way she can learn how to control the bloodlust. I think she's been doing well. All things considering."

"Not exactly true," Elena's voice came from behind them, and they both turned around in surprise. She smiled slightly at Stefan, "But thank you for saying it."

"Where's Damon?"

"He's...cleaning up downstairs," she admitted, "I kinda went a little crazy with the blood packets."

Elijah stood up, "Don't worry, Elena. I have complete faith in your ability to gain control of the bloodlust. And if you ever need any other guidance, please, do not hesitate to ask."

She stared at him blankly as he moved towards the door. "Wait," she blurted, "Where are you going? I thought you said you had found a cure to help me!"

"Since my mother spoke of it, I'm nearly certain the cure for the doppelganger exists. However, I must go and do extensive research to find out more about what needs to be done."

"Then why did you come back to Mystic Falls without any information?" Stefan snapped, "You can't just come here and get her hopes up without—"

"I merely returned to see if Elena would indeed be interested in the cure...and also to see with my own eyes that the rumors were true." He opened the door but then turned back around, "And I will pay a visit to my sister and find out why she is still in Mystic Falls. If it is any consolation, I will attempt to get her to leave." Then he held his hand out to Elena, "You have my word that I will return when I have concrete information." He paused and then added, "In the meantime, good luck. And stay strong."

She smiled tightly before reaching out to shake his hand, "I will. Goodbye Elijah."

He nodded at them both, and then he blurred out the door and was gone.

.

"Hey," Elena said to Stefan softly, "You okay? I know you and Damon are worried that I'm going to get my hopes up and then be disappointed if it doesn't work, but this is Elijah we're talking about...he wouldn't lie about something like this."

"I know," Stefan answered carefully, "I believe that he has always tried to help you, and I believe that he values human life. But that still doesn't mean that whatever he finds will be a guarantee."

"You believed that the elixir would work when Klaus did the sacrifice," Elena pointed out, "This isn't any different."

"Sure," he shrugged and stood up, "Come on, let's go practice more hunting. Later tonight, Damon and I will take you out for a test run in the town center and you can practice being around more people. How does that sound?"

"Sounds great," Elena responded distractedly, and she quickly moved to block Stefan's path. "Wait," she insisted, "There's something I have to tell you...about Damon."

"It's okay," Stefan shook his head, "You don't have to tell me until you're ready. You've gone through a lot recently. I'm not going to force you to make any decisions right now, alright?"

.

Damon, who had been standing just out of sight on the basement steps, waited to see if Elena would say anything. When she didn't, he loudly clambered up the remaining stairs and made his presence known in the living room. "Hey," he said to them, and held up a large black garbage bag. "We're going to have to make a blood-bank trip pretty soon." He tilted his head, "Or do you think Meredith would be a doll and get some for us?"

"Let's not get Meredith fired from her job," Stefan replied pointedly as he walked over to Damon and took the bag out of his hands. "I'll take this outside. Elena can fill you in on what Elijah said."

Elena waited till Stefan had gone out the back door before she turned apologetically towards Damon, "I tried to tell him..."

"What? That we kissed?" Damon asked nonchalantly, "Or that you chose to kiss me this time?"

"Both," she answered, looking flustered. "But he told me—"

"I heard," he interrupted. When she bit her lip and looked down at the ground, Damon sighed and walked over to her. "Elena, listen to me. You know that I love you, right?"

She nodded mutely.

"Then I'll wait," he said simply, cupping her face and gently pressing a kiss to her forehead. As he pulled away, however, Elena's hand suddenly shot out and grabbed his wrist. "Elena?" he asked in alarm when he caught sight of her bewildered expression, "What is it? What's wrong?" She raised a hand to her forehead, to the spot where he had just kissed her. Then, just as suddenly, she let her hand drop back down to her side. "Elena?" he asked again, growing concerned, "What happened? Are you okay?"

* * *

"Coming, coming," Rebekah muttered under her breath as someone incessantly rang the doorbell. With an annoyed scowl, she flung the door open, "What is the—"

"Ah, dear sister," Kol drawled from the doorstep, "Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"Kol?" she sputtered in disbelief as he brushed past her, "What are you doing back in Mystic Falls?"

"Well, I heard that you were planning on settling down," Kol turned to look at her, a dangerous smile playing on his lips, "And I just had to come back myself and see if it was true."

"As you can see," she replied through gritted teeth, "It is very much true. I'm tired of running, and I'm tired of being dragged around where people tell me to go. First it was father, then it was Klaus." Her voice took on a false bravado, "I'm not tied to either of them anymore. I'm free to do what I want."

"Yes, I'm sure Klaus' death opened up quite a few opportunities for you," Kol sneered, "Tell me, which Salvatore are you sniffing around these days?"

"Don't take that tone with me," Rebekah warned, "Just because Elijah tolerates your idiotic comments doesn't mean that I have to as well."

"Speaking of our last remaining brother, I wouldn't suppose you know why he's in Mystic Falls, would you?"

"Elijah? No, he left town a week ago."

"When you killed the doppelganger," Kol mused, "I didn't think you had it in you, Bex." He wandered over to the fireplace and examined the pictures on the mantlepiece for a moment before turning back around, "I'm surprised the Salvatores don't have your head on a stick yet."

She tossed her hair over her shoulder, "I haven't seen either of them since Elena became a vampire."

"I'm sure they have their hands full," Kol walked casually towards the door, "And you're wrong. Elijah is, in fact, back in town."

"And how would you know that?" Rebekah crossed her arms, "You only just got back yourself."

"Well I might've run into an acquaintance or two on my way here," Kol smirked. Then he opened the door and called out loudly, "Come on in now, don't be shy."

"You've got to be kidding me," Rebekah swore under her breath as Caroline and Tyler entered the house a second later. "Kol, these two are on the run from the Council—they're not supposed to be in Mystic Falls at all."

"Don't worry, we took the path through the woods to get here," Klaus began to say assertively, but he took a step back when Kol glared at him. "I mean..."

"You're scared of the Council?" Caroline spat, "Pathetic." She stepped forward, her hands on her hips, "You killed my best friend, you bitch."

Rebekah narrowed her eyes, "You forget who you're speaking to, Caroline. I could break your neck into a thousand little pieces if I wanted to. Klaus and his silly little infatuation aren't here to protect you any longer."

Her eyes flashed, "In what world do you think I would ever need _Klaus' _protection? I can take care of myself!"

"That's where you're wrong, Caroline," Kol smiled at her charmingly and suddenly blurred towards her. She let out a startled gasp as he stopped an inch away from her and raised a hand to stroke her cheek.

"Hey—" Klaus growled, his hand flashing out to grab Kol's wrist, "Don't you dare touch her."

Kol pushed him off easily, and Klaus stumbled backwards several feet. "Your sire isn't here to protect you anymore either," he informed Klaus, "And I think he would've wanted to make sure that his...interests...were looked after properly." He turned to look at Caroline as he spoke, making the meaning behind his words perfectly clear. "What do you say, love?" he leered at her, "Choose the winning team and we'll make sure that nothing happens to you."

Caroline shoved against him, looking disgusted. "Ugh, you Mikealsens are all the same! Overconfident, arrogant, cocky—well, guess what?" She moved towards Klaus and wrapped an arm around his waist, "Tyler broke every bone in his body a thousand times just so we could be together. He loves me, and I love him. I'm choosing him—always will." She turned on her heel to leave, but then she paused and smirked at Kol, "Oh, and don't take it personally. If Klaus was still alive, he wouldn't stand a chance either." She smiled triumphantly and held her hand out, "Come on Tyler, let's get out of here."

Kol immediately moved to block their exit, his expression abruptly becoming less amused. "This meeting could've gone in a very different direction," he hissed at her before grabbing Klaus' arm and harshly bending it behind his back.

Caroline screamed when she heard the bone snap, and Klaus winced in pain. "Oh my god," she shrieked, "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Sit," Kol demanded coldly, "And tell Rebekah and I everything that you overheard Elijah telling the Salvatores in the woods." When Caroline didn't move, he shrugged carelessly and pressed harder against Klaus' arm.

Another bone cracked, echoing loudly in the silence.

"Okay, okay!" Caroline shot a worried glance in Klaus' direction as she hurried over to the sofa to comply with Kol's orders. "I'll tell you what you want to know! Just don't hurt him!"

"Go on then," Rebekah tapped her foot impatiently, "We don't have all day."

"Tyler and I were on our way to our hideout—one of Klaus' secret houses in the woods—when we heard a bunch of voices arguing," Caroline spoke quickly, glancing every so often at Tyler to make sure that Kol wasn't hurting him further. "From what we heard, it sounded like Stefan and Damon were training Elena when suddenly Elijah showed up to tell them about..."

The door swung open and everyone froze.

Elijah stepped over the threshold, his eyes darting around the room as he took in the scene. "Well," he said pleasantly, "This is interesting." He turned to look at his sister with a smile, "Bex, I came to find out what you're still doing in Mystic Falls...and it looks like I've found my answer."

"We all know why any of us are still here," Kol interjected, "Isn't that right, Elijah?"

"I'm not sure I understand what you're insinuating, Kol."

"The stake," he snapped, "Where is it?"


	5. So Cold

_It's so quiet here  
And I feel so cold  
This house no longer  
Feels like home_

* * *

"Hey," Elena called out automatically as she opened the front door, "I'm home!" She frowned, however, when her gaze only met a darkened living room. "Jer?" she flipped on the lights and looked around the house, which was exactly as she had left it in the morning. "Jeremy?"

When no one responded, she felt the first pricklings of worry kick into her system. She immediately blurred up the stairs and paused outside Jeremy's room, tilting her head towards the door. He often had his headphones in, blaring music at an ungodly volume—but this time her enhanced hearing didn't pick up any sounds coming from within.

Growing more concerned, she knocked loudly and then pushed open the door. Her nose wrinkled at the usual mess, but one glance around the room confirmed that her brother wasn't there. "Damn it," she muttered under her breath, glancing at her watch as she hurried back down the stairs. It was nearly 11PM...there was no way he would decide not to come home without telling her, especially not after everything that had happened recently.

She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and quickly dialed in his number, only to be connected to his voicemail almost instantaneously. Either his cell phone battery was dead or…

Elena shook her head; she wasn't going to entertain any other possibilities. His cell phone had clearly died. That was the only explanation. With that rationalization, she sat down on the sofa and switched on the TV, planning to wait up for him. But then she sighed and pulled out her phone again. With a mounting feeling of dread, she speed dialed Damon's number and waited.

He picked up on the second ring. "Miss me already?"

"It's Jeremy," she explained hastily, "He's not here, and he's not answering his phone, and—"

"Whoa, okay calm down," Damon's tone became serious, "We'll find him, don't worry. What are the addresses of his friends' houses? Stefan and I can go check them out."

Elena opened her mouth and then shut it again. "I don't know," she confessed in a small voice, "I don't think he's really been hanging out with anyone…"

There was a moment of silence and then Stefan came on the line. "Elena, it's okay," he soothed, "I'll go to the Grill and see if his manager knows anything, alright? Damon will go back to town and—"

A car beeped from outside then and raucous laughter reached her ears. "Thanks for the ride guys," she heard Jeremy call out loudly. A second later, he opened the back door and blinked in surprise when he saw Elena standing in the living room. "Oh hey sis," he smiled a little too brightly, "What are you doing here so early?"

"Stefan, it's fine. Jeremy just got home. I'll talk to you guys later." She hung up the phone and tossed it on the sofa as she advanced on her brother. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Out," he shrugged, "Why?"

"Why?" Elena repeated, just barely reigning in her temper. "It's nearly midnight, and you didn't answer your phone when I called—"

"Calm down," Jeremy waved her off dismissively as he headed into the kitchen and grabbed a water bottle from the counter. "Man, I'm so thirsty," he announced to no one in particular, downing half the bottle in one gulp. He wiped his mouth as he came up for air and glanced at Elena, who was glaring at him. "What?" he rolled his eyes, "My phone died on me. No big deal."

"Actually it is a big deal," she snatched the water bottle out of his hand, ignoring his angry protest. "Who were those guys who dropped you off? Are they from school? Where were you…" She trailed off and sniffed Jeremy, recognizing the scent rolling off him. Elena took a step back, her eyes widening, "Have you been drinking?"

"What do you care?" he brushed past her and walked back into the living room, grabbing his bag from the floor. "I have homework to do...Or do I need permission for that too?"

"Hey," Elena instinctively blurred across the room to block his way to the stairs, "I'm not done talking to you."

Jeremy looked startled for a minute, but then his expression became belligerent. "What do you want?"

She blew out a gust of air, willing herself not to raise her voice. "It's a school night, Jer. I was worried about you. You know you're not supposed to go out on—"

"You're not my mother, Elena," Jeremy snapped, and she finally detected a hint of his slurred speech. "And you're not my father, and you're not Aunt Jenna, or Uncle John, and you're sure as hell not Ric so why don't you get the hell out of my way?"

Elena stared at him in shock. "What's wrong with you? Why are you acting this way? I thought…" she fumbled over her words, "I thought you were doing okay."

"Yeah," he scoffed, "I'm doing just fine. Can I go now?"

"What? No," she held a hand out to stop him, "You haven't told me who those guys were. Do I know them from school?"

Jeremy laughed bitterly, "Says the girl who hasn't been to school in WEEKS. You don't get to stand here and lecture me on my choice of friends, Elena. In fact, you don't get to lecture me about anything!"

"What are you talking about? Did something happen? Did someone say something to you?"

He gritted his teeth, "You don't get it, do you? I'm the one that has to go to school and face everyone who feels SORRY for us! I'm the one that has to hear the whispers and the gossip, with everyone wondering why half the senior class has suddenly disappeared off the face of the earth. Matt and Bonnie left town, Caroline and Tyler on the run, you and Stefan hunting in the woods—I can't take it anymore!"

"I…I didn't know," Elena tried to reach out to him, but he moved out of her grasp with a scowl. "Jeremy, I'm sorry. I had no idea what it was like at school."

"And add the fact that I have to face my sister's killer every single day, walking through the halls like she rules the school or something—"

"Rebekah?" she interrupted in confusion, "You still see her at school? Why?"

"Who knows, maybe she enjoys being the center of attention," Jeremy responded sarcastically. He suddenly tossed his bookbag back onto the ground and then flopped onto the couch. "Screw homework. Maybe I'll just watch a movie instead."

"No—Jer, what the hell?" Elena sputtered, "Look, I get that you're angry, but you don't get to act this way. Not after everything that we've been through."

"Why not?" he turned to look at the TV stubbornly, "It's not like school matters anyway. Maybe I'll drop out and get my GED."

"You are not dropping out," Elena said forcefully, "You're going to graduate, and you're gonna go to college, and—"

"Why?" he sneered, "You're not." He abruptly stood up and slammed the remote back onto the table. "You know what, Elena? You just go around and pretend like you're this perfect example, when you're not! You're a hypocrite, and it's about fucking time you realized it. And if you don't want to deal with me any longer, you can just ship me off to Denver like you did last time!" With that, he began storming up the stairs. "I'm going to bed."

"Jeremy!"

"LEAVE ME ALONE!"

His door slammed with a bang that reverberated throughout the house, and Elena slowly sank into an armchair. And the tears that she had been holding back slid silently down her cheeks.

* * *

She didn't know how long she sat there, staring into thin air in a catatonic-like state. When she blinked, however, she noticed the faint sunlight streaming through the windows. She winced as she stood up, stretching out her stiff muscles. Then she reached over for her cell phone and glanced at the time. 6 AM.

Elena stood there for a full minute, feeling utterly lost. A second or two later, she realized that for the first time all week, she hadn't thought about blood in 7+ hours. She half-turned towards the refrigerator, but then she shook her head and headed towards the staircase instead.

After a quick shower, she threw on a random pair of jeans and a sweatshirt from her closet. As she stood in front of her mirror to brush out the tangles in her wet hair, her eye caught a frame sitting on the edge of her dresser. She picked it up with a small smile, examining the three happy people in the photo. It was a picture of herself, Bonnie, and Caroline. Judging by the cheerleader outfits, it was probably taken during freshman year.

A simpler time.

Elena stroked her thumb longingly over the glass, and her chest tightened. She missed them terribly. As she looked back into her mirror, she spontaneously made a decision. Bonnie might be halfway across the country, but she still had one friend left in the vicinity. Strengthening her resolve, Elena grabbed a lipstick and hurried across the hall into Jeremy's room.

He was sprawled out on his bed, seemingly dead to the world. She tiptoed over to his alarm clock and set it for 7:15AM, figuring that would leave him enough time to get to school by the second bell. Then she strode over to his mirror and pulled the lipstick out of her pocket. She contemplated for a moment before scrawling in jagged letters across the surface of the mirror: GO TO SCHOOL. Then below it, as an afterthought, she added: AND NO MORE DRINKING.

Satisfied with her work, she drew a little heart at the bottom and wrote 'Love, your concerned sister.' Then she slid the lipstick back into her pocket and quietly closed the door behind her.

.

Elena hadn't been to visit Caroline at her new hideout yet, but she had a general sense of where it was. She wandered the woods for about ten minutes before she came across the house that Stefan had described to her. Elena looked up at it for a moment before taking a deep breath and marching up the stairs. She had barely knocked once before the door flew open and she came face to face with a gigantic crossbow.

"What the—"

"Elena?"

"Tyler?" she asked uncertainly, eying the crossbow with some trepidation. "Um...were you expecting someone else?"

Klaus began to lower the weapon, "Well, yes, now that you mention it...We weren't expecting you." He peered over her shoulder, "Did you come with anyone else?"

"No..."

"Is that Elena's voice I hear?" an excited squeal came from somewhere inside the house. The next thing Elena knew, she was being tackled by a blonde blur. "Oh my god!" Caroline clapped her hands happily, "It's really you! You finally came!"

"Uh," Klaus cleared his throat uncomfortably, "I'll give you two a chance to catch up." He began to head towards the woods, but Elena quickly reached out to touch his arm. He looked down at her hand on his wrist and glanced back up into her sincere expression. For the first time, he felt an unfamiliar sense of guilt.

"Tyler, it's good to see you too," Elena smiled at him, "I'm sorry I haven't been to visit earlier. I've just been...dealing with some stuff."

Klaus nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I'm glad you're still alive," he gestured awkwardly, "I mean, well, you know..."

"Yeah, you too," she hesitated, "You know what I mean."

"He knows what you mean," Caroline waved him off with a kiss, "Okay, let us have our girl time now. Shoo!"

Elena laughed as she was ushered into the house, "He didn't have to leave."

"I want you all to myself," Caroline stated, grabbing Elena's hand and leading her into the living room. "Come on, sit down. Do you want me to get you anything?" She paused, "Blood?"

"No, don't worry about—"

"Ooh I know!" Caroline hopped back up and disappeared into the adjoining kitchen. "It's early, how about some coffee laced with blood?"

"That sounds, er..."

"It's an acquired taste," Caroline returned a few minutes later with two steaming mugs. "So," she prompted, "Tell me everything."

"It's been rough," Elena admitted, "Especially without my best friends." She gratefully snuggled into Caroline's waiting arms and began to tell her everything.

* * *

"I'm about to go over there and give Jeremy a piece of my mind," Caroline snapped indignantly an hour later, "How dare he say those things to you?"

"He's hurting, Care," Elena answered wearily, "He's lost so many people...and it's all my fault."

Caroline glared at her, "Don't say that. And don't make excuses for him! He's not some dumb kid anymore, he should know better. Being drunk doesn't excuse his behavior." She pursed her lips and tightened her arms around her friend, "Don't take his words to heart, Elena. He loves you, you know that."

"I know," Elena said quietly, "It's just hard knowing that my own brother was in so much pain and I was too wrapped up in my own drama to realize what was going on."

"First of all, you're eighteen," Caroline pointed out, "And second of all, I think becoming a vampire accounts to more than just regular ol' "drama" which I'm sure Jeremy will understand when he's a little more sober." She tilted her head, "And if he doesn't, then I will gladly kick his ass."

She smiled in spite of herself, "Thanks, Care. I knew I could count on you."

"Okay, so," Caroline finished off the last of her coffee before re-settling herself onto the couch, "You've told me about your transition, your training, Elijah's visit, and Jeremy...but you haven't really told me about Stefan and Damon."

Elena groaned and buried her face into a pillow. "I know," she mumbled, "I've been trying to avoid thinking about them."

"You chose to say goodbye to Stefan that night," Caroline prodded softly, "What does that mean in terms of your relationship? Are you back together with him?"

"No," she answered immediately, "Definitely not." Elena straightened and stared absently into her half-empty coffee mug. "No matter how much I care about Damon, I still love Stefan...But after everything that has happened over this past year, I can't imagine a situation where I could ever be in a relationship with Stefan again."

Caroline frowned.

"We're both different people than we were two years ago, or even a year ago," Elena tried to explain, "And no matter how much I love him, things will never go back to what they were. Being with him would just remind me of all the pain and heartache he put me through."

"He still cares about you," Caroline placed her hand over Elena's, "Even though he broke your heart, I'm sure he never stopped loving you."

"I know," she nodded, "I do. But Damon..."

"Loves you, too," Caroline finished gently, "I know."

At her words, Elena looked up with a frown. "That reminds me," she said slowly, "Something strange happened to me yesterday."

For some reason, Caroline looked hesitant. "What?" she asked cautiously, "You already told me about Elijah."

"No, this is about Damon. He..." she bit her lip, "He kissed me on the forehead—"

"Yes, I can see why that would be strange," Caroline cut her off thoughtfully, "You wanted him to give you a real kiss instead?"

"What? No! I mean yes, I mean—no, that's not the strange part!" Elena massaged her temples, feeling a headache coming on. "When he kissed me, I had the oddest sense of deja vu...Like maybe it had happened before, except I didn't remember it happening? Ugh, I don't think I'm explaining this very well. It was almost like I had a flash of memory that wasn't my own, but it felt so real...And I felt like maybe it HAD happened and I had somehow forgotten."

Caroline's expression flickered, "What exactly happened in this suppposed forgotten memory?"

Elena closed her eyes, rooting around in her head for the wisps of details she could remember. "Damon was giving me back my necklace," she murmured, "I think it was the night they had rescued me from Rose and Trevor."

"And?"

Her brow furrowed, trying to hold on to the memory. It almost felt like it was slipping away from her, the more she tried to recall what had happened in it. "Damon said he wanted to tell me something, and he wouldn't give me back the necklace until he had told me..."

'_I just have to say it once. You just need to hear it.  
I love you, Elena. And it is because I love you that...  
I can't be selfish with you.  
Why you can't know this.'_

"Then he kissed me on the forehead," Elena finished slowly, feeling the memory fade into the edges of her mind. "So what do you think?" she asked, finally looking back up, "Maybe it was a dream I had or something?"

Caroline was gaping at her.

"What?"

"_Damon_ said that to you?" she squeaked, "All the way back then?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Elena," Caroline reached over to grasp her hands, "That feeling you just described to me about deja vu and having a memory feel so real even though you don't remember it happening? That's what I felt like after I became a vampire...when my previous Compulsions started to wear off." She met Elena's gaze, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

It felt like all the air had been sucked out of the room. Her head spun, desperately grappling with this new information. "I don't believe it," she whispered, "I...I never knew."

"Well now you do," Caroline patted her hand sympathetically. "Don't worry, Elena. The right answer will come to you eventually. You just have to think about the one person you can't imagine ever living without." She paused and then added, "And now that you're a vampire, you get to choose the one person who you can see yourself spending an eternity with..."

Elena tried to smile, "I hope you're right." Then she looked at her watch and snorted disbelievingly, "Wow, I've been rambling about myself for like the past hour and half while you and Tyler are the ones that have been forced into hiding...Speaking of which, what IS this place?" She raised an impressed eyebrow, "Pretty nice for a hideout."

"One of Klaus' secret houses," Caroline shrugged, "Tyler somehow knew about it."

"And how have you guys been doing? It must be hard not being able to see your parents, your friends..."

"We've been managing," Caroline looked downcast, "At least Tyler is here with me. It makes the whole thing a little easier...even though he has been acting kinda weird."

"Weird how?"

"I don't know. It's like he hasn't been himself...I guess he just misses everyone, I know I do."

"Have you seen anyone?" Elena asked hesitantly, "Or heard from Bonnie?"

"Bonnie finally texted me back a few days ago," Caroline held out her phone so that Elena could read it, "Only to say that she's been bonding with her dad, and to let her know if there's an emergency or something. Otherwise, she doesn't want to be involved in anything even remotely vampire-related."

Elena read over the text and looked away, "Oh."

"Other than that, I haven't seen anyone...Well, except for Stefan when he brings us our blood supply," Caroline went on, "Up until yesterday, that is."

"What happened yesterday?"

"Tyler and I were sorta kidnapped by Kol and Rebekah—"

"WHAT?"

"They wanted intel on why Elijah was back in town...and they kept asking us if we knew where the stake was. But we told them the truth—that it burned with Klaus' body back at that warehouse."

Elena frowned, "Did they believe you?"

"No," Caroline rolled her eyes, "But Elijah finally got there and was able to convince them that we didn't know anything." She suddenly turned her head as the front door opened and called out, "Tyler, we're in the living room!"

Elena looked up as well and smiled when Tyler entered the room. Her smile faded, however, when she saw who was two steps behind him. "Elijah?" she hurriedly got to her feet, "You're back already?"

"I never left," he admitted, "I'm afraid we have a problem."

"What? What's wrong?"

"Kol and Rebekah...they seem to believe that Damon secretly retrieved the stake from Klaus' body after he died and is planning to use it on our family as revenge for what Rebekah did to you."

Elena shook her head, "That's ridiculous. Damon would've told us if he had the stake. It's gone, Elijah. It burned to ash along with Klaus' remains."

"Yes, well, they don't believe that," Elijah cleared his throat, "So they've taken it upon themselves to question Stefan and Damon." He eyed her significantly, "I believe you're already privy to my sister's methods of interrogation..."

"Oh my god," Elena breathed, "She's torturing them."

Without thinking twice, she sped out the door.

* * *

***so what do you guys think? Does Damon have the stake? =P  
**

**P.S. ****this fic should be about 10-12 chapters long, in case you're wondering why the plot is moving at a faster pace than my other fics :) **  



	6. Break You Hard

_Take my love  
Before I go  
'Cause you should know  
I'm about to break you hard_

* * *

Fueled by a combination of rage and fear, Elena had nearly reached the Mikaelsens' house before any of the others caught up to her. Then she abruptly hit something very solid and stumbled backwards. Arms reached out to grasp her shoulders as she caught her balance, and she pursed her lips when she saw Elijah standing in front of her.

"You can't stop me," she warned, "I'm going over there, no matter what you say."

"Elena, think about this," Elijah let go of her shoulders, but didn't move out of her way. "You haven't seen Rebekah since the…well, since she—"

"Since she ran Matt and I off the bridge?" Elena crossed her arms, "Yes, I'm aware of that."

"Are you sure you're ready to face her?"

She narrowed her eyes, "Aren't you the one that told me to stay strong? What better way to prove myself than facing the person responsible for my death?"

"No one is questioning your strength, Elena," he stated calmly, "I'm merely questioning your judgment when it comes to the Salvatore brothers."

"He's right," Caroline interjected, and Elena frowned as she turned around to face her best friend. "You're going to storm in there and get yourself killed!"

"Damon and Stefan are in there," Elena snapped, "I'm not going to sit back and do nothing!"

"Tyler, back me up here," Caroline complained, turning to look at Klaus. "Tell Elena that she needs a plan before she goes in guns a blazing."

"Yeah…" Klaus coughed, "Rebekah and Kol can be…I mean, you probably don't want to get in their way unless you have a solid plan."

"I do have a plan," Elena announced, and then she brushed past Elijah and blurred towards the house before any of them could stop her.

She could hear Caroline cursing her name in the background, but she ignored them and raised her fist to bang firmly against the door. It wasn't until the fifth knock that the door finally opened.

"Elena," Kol greeted, leaning against the doorway and wearing a smirk that was strangely reminiscent of Damon. He made a blatant show of looking her over, "Vampirism suits you."

She didn't smile, "Well, you have your sister to thank for that."

"I'll be sure to do that," Kol glanced over his shoulder at something that was out of her eyesight before swiveling back around to meet her gaze. "So, to what do I owe this pleasure?"

"I think you know," Elena replied curtly, "Why are you back in town, Kol?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, pretending to look confused. "You should be asking your good friend Elijah that question, Elena. After all, he returned for the same reason that I did."

"Somehow, I highly doubt that."

At that, Kol pushed himself off the ledge of the doorway and leaned towards her conspiratorially. "Did he tell you otherwise?" he breathed into her ear, "Don't be fooled, Elena. Elijah may talk the talk about morality, but do you _really _believe he doesn't hold our family in the highest regard?"

Elena tried to lean away, but Kol's hand shot out to hold her in place. "Let me go," she hissed, struggling against his grip. "I know Elijah, and he didn't come back to town because of that stake!"

Kol tilted his head, looking genuinely curious. "How is it that you remain so naïve after everything you've been through? Are you that utterly stupid?"

"Oh give it up, Kol," a familiar voice remarked disdainfully, "Elena's naivety knows no bounds, isn't that right?"

Even though Elena had been mentally preparing herself for this moment, she still grew cold when Rebekah appeared at her brother's shoulder. "I'm…" her voice petered out and she sucked in a breath of unnecessary air. Trying again, she said in a stronger tone, "I'm here to see Damon and Stefan."

Rebekah smiled at her pityingly, "Of course you are." She tossed her hair over her shoulder and moved slightly so that she was standing abreast with Kol. "You'll have to forgive my delay in coming to the door." She reached into her back pocket and produced a shiny blade, "I had to clean the blood off my special toy—"

"Whoa," Kol pushed his sister aside as Elena furiously leapt at her. "Feisty little vampire, aren't you?" He grinned at Elena as he caught her in his arms and held her back, "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"Rebekah already took care of that!" Elena shouted, losing her temper completely. "I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID TO ME!"

Several feet away, Rebekah composed her expression into one of boredom. "I never asked for your forgiveness, Elena. On the contrary, I'm simply _dying _to finish what I started…"

"That's enough," a deep voice commanded from the doorway. Kol scoffed, but at the same time he loosened his grip around Elena. She threw him a deeply scathing look as she wrenched herself out of his grasp and turned around. Elijah entered the house then, but Caroline and Tyler both lingered on the threshold. He came to a stop directly in front of Rebekah, "You will not ruin this girl's life any more than you already have, do I make myself clear?"

Rebekah scowled petulantly, "She started it."

"DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?"

"Oh yes," she sneered in response, "How could I forget? This is the precious _Elena _we're talking about—everyone can't wait to bend over backwards to make sure her feelings don't get hurt!"

"I said, that's _enough_," Elijah repeated warningly, "Let Elena see who she came for. It's the least you can do."

"I haven't found out where the stake is yet," Rebekah answered churlishly, "And neither Salvatore is getting out of here alive before I get the information I'm looking for, got it?"

Elena took a step forward, her eyes flashing with anger. "You're pathetic."

"Excuse me?"

Elena crossed her arms, "You heard me." She stepped even closer, "You know that Damon doesn't have the stake. And you know that Stefan doesn't have it either. You just want to torture them because they hurt YOUR feelings, isn't that right?"

"You have no idea what you're—"

"You were in love with Stefan and you thought he would fall for you again as soon as he got his memories back, but he didn't. Then Damon tricked you into falling for him, and you actually let yourself believe that him sleeping with you meant something. And now you want revenge." She got into Rebekah's face, "So really, who's the naïve one?"

In the deadly silence that followed, someone began a slow clap. When Elena whirled around, Kol was grinning broadly. "Classic," he chortled, continuing to clap. "Really, that was damn good entertainment. Wouldn't you agree, Bex?"

"Shut it, Kol," Rebekah's hands were fisted into her sides, "Don't say another word."

He ignored her and sauntered over to Elena, throwing an arm around her shoulders. "You know, Elena, I think I've got you pegged all wrong. Anyone who can stand up to my sister like that is definitely worthy of my attention." He glanced over at Elijah, "I see what you mean about her now, brother."

"Oh for heaven's sake," Rebekah snapped, "Not you too!"

"Don't be bitter because she beat you at your own game," Kol answered easily. He placed his hand on the small of Elena's back and pushed her forward, "Go on then. Damon and Stefan are in the room all the way at the end of the hallway. Go through three sets of double doors and you should be able to find them."

"Can Caroline and Tyler come with me?"

Kol considered her for a moment before he suddenly grabbed her arm and forcefully pulled her forward so that they were inches away from each other. "The three of you will be allowed to speak to Damon and Stefan, but that is IT. Do not even think about setting them free or concocting some ill-advised escape plan. There is no route to leave this house except through this room, where we will be waiting. Understood?"

She nodded quickly, allowing a gracious smile to cross her lips. "Understood. Thank you, Kol."

* * *

Elena swallowed nervously as she pushed open the final set of double doors. Here she stopped, staring in open-mouthed horror at the sight before her. "Oh my god," she whispered, "What...but they're..."

"What did Rebekah do to them?" Caroline recoiled, her hands flying to her mouth. "They're not even conscious!" She turned to Elena, her eyes begging. "We need to find a way to get them out of here! What do we do?"

Klaus hesitated, frowning at her. "For starters, keep your voice down...They can probably still hear you even though they're at the other end of the house."

"Tyler is right," Elena agreed in a low voice, staring up in morbid fascination at the shackles bound to the ceiling. "We need to stay as quiet as possible." She took a few steps forward, looking in between Damon and Stefan. They were hanging from the shackles about ten feet apart, and it was readily apparent that a near-lethal dosage of vervain had been pumped into both their systems.

"Look at that," Caroline pointed, "See the differences in the way they've been tortured? Damon's shirt is open, and there are a bunch of blade marks across his chest. But Stefan doesn't have any cuts or bruises...it looks like he's had more injections of vervain though. See these puncture marks?"

Both Klaus and Elena stared at her in surprise.

"What?" she shrugged, "My mother is the sheriff. You think she didn't teach me a thing or two about dead bodies?"

Damon's lips moved then, a faint mutter filling the room. Elena briefly caught the word "Barbie" before he fell silent once more. "I think he's waking up!" she hurried forward, cupping his face between her hands. "Damon, can you hear me? It's Elena. I'm here with Caroline and Tyler." He murmured something again, looking like he was in so much pain that she immediately felt tears spring to the corner of her eyes. "Come on," she pleaded, "Damon?"

At the sound of her voice, he groggily opened his eyes. "Elena?" he groaned, his head swaying alarmingly off balance. "Is it really you?" he mumbled, "What are you doing here?"

"We don't have a lot of time," she whispered urgently, glancing over her shoulder to make sure that no one else had entered the room. "Damon, I need you to promise me that you don't have the stake. I mean, I already know that you don't—but I need to be able to convince Rebekah and the others of that...Can you tell me you don't have it?"

"I don't have it," he repeated dutifully, "Don't...have it..." His eyes were strangely unfocused as he gave a sudden laugh, "That the best trick you can come up with, Bex? Be careful now, your talents are slipping..."

Elena drew back, confused. "What? What are you talking about?"

"He thinks Rebekah is giving him delusions," Klaus offered helpfully, "It's one of her signature moves." He paused and cleared his throat, "I mean, that's what I've heard."

"Damn it," Elena backed off in frustration, running her fingers through her hair. "He's not going to tell us anything if he doesn't believe that it's actually us!" She looked over to where Caroline was trying to wake up Stefan, "Any luck?"

"No, he's still out of it completely...But I do have an idea about how you can convince Damon that it's really you." Caroline eyed Elena significantly, "You should tell him something that Rebekah couldn't possibly know. Something that only the two of you share...perhaps something that you told me about this morning?"

Elena hesitated for a moment, gathering her courage before she moved towards Damon again. "Hey," she said softly, reaching up with one hand and stroking the side of his face. "I know you think that this is a dream or hallucination or whatever, so I'm going to prove to you that it's not. That I'm really Elena, and that I'm really here."

The corner of his mouth lifted in amusement, "How are you going to do that?"

Throwing all caution to the wind, she closed the gap between them and pressed her lips to his. He responded after a moment, but when she pulled back to look at him, his expression was still uncertain. "Yesterday you kissed me on the forehead," she breathed, "And I lied and told you that I got dizzy for a second, and that's why I was acting weird. The truth is, I had just gotten a memory back...from when you had Compelled me."

Damon's eyes seemed to focus on her, and he straightened slightly. He might not fully believe her yet, but she could tell that he was paying attention.

"You told me you loved me," Elena whispered, "Right before you gave me back my necklace. Then you Compelled me to forget what you had said, because you felt like you didn't deserve me..."

He nodded slowly, recognition at last flickering in his gaze. "Elena," he sighed, his mouth covering hers again. This time the kiss wasn't as chaste, and she could feel herself being drawn into a haze.

It was only when Caroline coughed pointedly that Elena came to her senses. She stepped several feet back and raised her voice to a normal volume. "Damon, this isn't the time to play revenge. Rebekah and Kol could seriously hurt you and Stefan if they don't get what they want. Do you or do you not have the stake?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, trying to discern what game she was playing. When he answered, he sounded angry. "Alaric had just DIED, Elena. The last hope I had of my friend ever coming back to me was GONE. Klaus was dead, and everyone I cared about was directly linked to his bloodline. On top of that, I had just realized that Alaric's death meant that the woman I loved was dead, too. Exactly when or how do you think I had the time and _presence of mind _to go back and get that stake?"

"That's what I thought," Elena replied convincingly, "Thank you for being honest with me." Then, still holding his gaze, she moved forward again until her lips were a mere breadth away from his. "Give me something," she murmured desperately, closing her eyes as she allowed herself to get sucked in again.

This time, however, she knew it was going to be different.

Images immediately flashed through her mind as Damon kissed her with a purposeful finesse, giving her the answers she was looking for. _Stake. Salvatore house. Living room._ Here, however, the flashes became fuzzy as he began zooming in on different objects in the living room. Elena frowned as she broke the kiss and took a step back. Did he not remember where in the room he had put it?

Unfortunately, she didn't have time to question him further. Rebekah chose that moment to push the door open and she strode into the room briskly. "I think you've had enough time to chit-chat. Do you have any information for me?"

Elena turned to glare at her, "Damon told me he doesn't have the stake."

"Yes, I heard," Rebekah replied lazily, "Yet somehow I can't bring myself to believe him."

Kol and Elijah followed her into the room, but neither of them spoke. Caroline glanced at them before placing her hands on her hips. "Why not?" she demanded, "If you heard what he said, then you should be able to understand that—"

"I understand that Elena brings out his humanity and he would've been too distraught to think about the stake that night," Rebekah interrupted, "But I also know how heady the need for revenge can be. There's nothing to stop him from going back to get the stake after he found out what happened to her."

"Just because that's something that you would've done, doesn't mean that Damon would do the same thing."

Rebekah tilted her head, "If he doesn't have it, then someone else does. Bring me the stake within 24 hours and I'll let your boyfriends go. Fail to do so and I'll..." she trailed off, flicking her blade open again. "Well," she smiled dangerously, "You probably don't want to know."

"But—"

"The clock is ticking, Elena," Kol interrupted, his expression impassive. "You sure you want to waste those precious minutes bantering with my sister?"

Elijah folded his hands behind his back, barely reigning in his temper. "And what if Elena cannot locate the stake? Perhaps it really did burn with Klaus' body. What then, Bex?"

Her expression grew cold, "That isn't a scenario I'm willing to believe. Tick tock, Elena."

"Fine," Elena hissed, "We're going." She fairly flew out of the house, with Caroline and Tyler on her heels. It wasn't until they had reached the other end of the woods that she finally came to a stop. "Okay," she wheezed, "I think we're out of hearing range by now. They didn't follow us, did they?"

Caroline shook her head, her blonde curls bouncing around her shoulders. "What is it? Did Damon say something?"

"He did take the stake," Elena paced back and forth, "And it's somewhere in the living room of the Salvatore house. We have to find it before it's too late."

"Wait—what are you going to do once you find it? Just hand it over to Rebekah?"

"No," Elena lifted her head defiantly, "I'm going to kill her, then I'm going to kill Kol. I'm done being a victim and letting them terrorize this town and the people I care about. Are you going to help me or not?"

Caroline smiled grimly, "Of course I will. Tyler?"

"What?" Klaus shook himself out of his reverie, "Yeah, yeah. I'm in. Let's go find this stake."

"Let's go kill some Originals," Caroline corrected. Then she and Elena sped away, leaving Klaus to stare after them in indecision. He internally debated with himself for a minute. The way he saw it, he currently had two options:

Option 1) He could blow his cover now and go warn his remaining family members what Elena was up to...this would most certainly result in the deaths of the Salvatore brothers (he could live with that) and Elena (who was useless to him now)...but it would also completely alienate Caroline (something that he wasn't willing to do quite yet).

Option 2) Play along with the scavenger hunt until the stake was found, then destroy it before Elena had a chance to use it. That would at least buy him more time. And perhaps once it was gone, he could find a way to return to his own body...

Smiling to himself, he blurred away in the direction of the Salvatore house.

* * *

***I'm sure everyone can guess which scene inspired the D/E kiss-memory-sharing plot device ;) **


	7. Needle, Haystack

_You show the **lights** that stop me  
Turn to stone_  
_You shine it when I'm alone  
And so I tell myself  
That I'll be strong__  
_

* * *

"Ugh," Caroline complained, letting her head thump onto the bookshelf despairingly, "This is hopeless!"

"Don't say that!" Elena ran her fingers through her hair in frustration as she looked around the living room that they had torn apart. "We can't give up yet...We have to be close to finding it—"

"CLOSE?" Klaus snapped, gesturing angrily to the shambles lying around them. "We've upturned every bookshelf, tossed aside every sofa cushion, and peered behind every dark corner. It's not here, Elena!"

"Yes it is," she responded stubbornly, "I believe in what Damon told me. He wouldn't lead us on this wild goose chase."

"And what if he never actually believed it was you?" Klaus demanded, "What then? Maybe he still thought it was Rebekah trying to trick him, so he fed her this lie instead!"

Elena closed her eyes, thinking back to how much fire he had put into the kiss. She unconsciously touched her lips with her fingertips, feeling the ghost of Damon's mouth against hers. "No," she whispered, opening her eyes to meet Klaus' gaze. "Damon knew it was me. I know he did."

"Then what's your explanation? We've been looking in this room for three hours, and we haven't found anything!"

"I don't know," she admitted, picking up a cushion lying at her feet and tossing it back onto the armchair it came from. "We must be missing something."

"It's not like there's a lot of hiding places in just this one room, Elena," Caroline offered hesitantly, beginning to put the books back on the shelf she had emptied. "We already looked inside every drawer, and we felt the walls for any secret panels…"

"So what are you saying?" Elena asked accusingly, "Do you want to just give up? Stefan and Damon are being tortured as we speak, Caroline! What do you want me to do?"

Caroline placed her hands on her hips, annoyance flaring in her temper. "Obviously I'm not giving up! I'm just saying, there's about fifteen other rooms in this house we could be searching, and I'm sure those have like a million more suitable hiding places for this stake."

"Damon wanted us to look in THIS room," Elena tried to explain patiently, but even she could hear the tension lacing her tone. "Searching elsewhere would be a waste of time."

Klaus chose that moment to mutter audibly under his breath, "Like this isn't."

"Tyler, if you have something to say—"

"I just said it," he shot back, ignoring Caroline's warning hiss. "Elena, this is like looking for a needle in a haystack…and it might not even be the right haystack!"

Elena chewed the inside of her lip, trying to decide how to respond. "Look," she said finally, "I know this is frustrating, and I know it feels like we've looked everywhere—but obviously we're missing something important. We've got to…I don't know…we have to start thinking like Damon does."

"Thinking like Damon does," Klaus repeated flatly, "How do you mean?"

"Okay," Elena stood in the middle of the room and spread her arms wide. "Close your eyes. Imagine Damon is here right now, and he wanted to hide something in this room so that no one else would be able to find it." She paused and then said slowly, "Now, where would he put it?"

After a few moments of silence, Caroline sighed and opened her eyes. "This idea is great in theory, Elena, but there's just one problem: Tyler and I don't know Damon well enough to be able to predict how he thinks. The only one who does is you."

"That's not true," Elena insisted, "We've all known him for the same period of time. We all know that he can be…" she trailed off, trying to find the right words. "Spontaneous, independent, fearless, and...clever." Then her brow furrowed as she mulled over her own words. "That's right," she murmured thoughtfully, "He is clever..."

Caroline straightened, "Elena? What is it? Did you get an idea of where he could've hidden it?"

"I was just thinking," she hesitated, "Do you guys remember that business with the moonstone?" She glanced at Tyler, looking nervous. "Sorry, I hate to bring it up...but do you remember how Damon hid it in this house?"

"Oh that's right," Caroline hopped up and snapped her fingers, "He hid it in that soap dish in the upstairs bathroom!"

"Exactly," Elena tilted her head, "It was hidden in PLAIN SIGHT."

"What are you saying?" Klaus let his gaze sweep critically around the room, "That the stake is in front of our faces, but we're not seeing it?"

Elena nodded, trying to view the hiding spots in the room with a fresh mindset. "What would Damon consider the absolute last place anyone would look?"

"Um..." Caroline knelt to the ground and tapped it experimentally, "Under the floorboards?"

"Well," Klaus deadpanned, "That is certainly the last place I would look."

"The floorboards?" Elena frowned, "No, no. That's too much work, and not obvious enough. We can't randomly tear apart the floor. No, it's got to be something else."

The three of them began reworking the room again, and fell into a familiar pattern of silence. Meanwhile, Elena could feel herself growing more and more frustrated by the second. _Why was this so hard? Damon and Stefan's LIVES were on the line, and she couldn't even find one stupid—_

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts, and Elena unceremoniously stomped over to it. "What?" she growled, nearly taking the door off its hinges as she flung it open. "What do you...want?" She heaved a sigh when she saw Elijah standing on the threshold. With a glance over her shoulder to confirm that Tyler and Caroline hadn't followed her, she quickly shut the door behind her and stepped onto the porch. "What are you doing here?"

He stood there, his hands in his pockets—and the expression on his face making it abundantly clear that this was the last place he wanted to be. "Would you take a walk with me?"

"A walk?" Elena crossed her arms, "No. I can't do that. See, I'm a little busy...In case you failed to notice, your sister has put a clock on Stefan and Damon's lives." Then she mock frowned, "Oh wait, but you were there when it happened—so you should already know that."

"Look, I know you're upset and I am sorry. Rebekah and Kol are all I have left, Elena. I can't go against them, not now."

"Fine," she shrugged, "I understand. Is that what you want to hear? Is that why you came all the way over here?"

"No," he met her gaze uncertainly, "I came here to tell you that the Salvatore brothers' lives aren't the only matter at hand with a ticking clock."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"The cure for your humanity," Elijah cocked his head to the left, silently asking her to follow him. He walked a few steps away from the house, and Elena begrudgingly fell into pace with him. "You've already been a vampire for more than a week," he told her, "And becoming human again is no small feat. It'll take into account the time that has already passed."

"Is that why you never offered the cure to Katherine?" Elena asked bluntly, "Because she became a vampire years ago? And if she became human now, then she would just..."

"Die, yes...But remember, my mother only told me about the cure recently. I was not aware of it when I first met Katerina."

She stopped walking then, knowing that they were far enough from the house to not be overheard. "Alright, so you came here to tell me that you're leaving town?"

He looked conflicted, "I hate to leave in the middle of all this...I probably won't get back within the 24 hours."

Elena felt a sort of smug satisfaction that her heartbeat wouldn't be able to give away her intentions this time. "That's okay," she told him in a steady voice, "It's a simple deal. I'm sure I can handle myself."

"That's not..."

"Or is it your sister and brother that you don't trust?"

Elijah sidestepped her question neatly, backing away with a faint smile. "Then I leave it to you to oversee that this bargain ends civilly. Good luck, Elena. I hope that I will have good news when I return."

"Me too," she agreed, raising her hand to wave goodbye to him. "By the way, you don't know how I can get in touch with Katherine, do you?"

Elijah looked confused, "Why would I know that? I thought she was on the run."

"Well, Klaus is dead now so I figured..." Elena bit her lip, "Never mind. Have a safe trip, Elijah. Thank you for doing this for me." With a final wave, she blurred back towards the house. Once she was safely inside, she checked the windows to make sure that he had left as well. As she twitched the curtains back into place, she heard Caroline clear her throat pointedly. Elena turned around with a small smile, "Any luck?"

"No," Caroline waved her off dismissively, "So, what did Mr. Original want this time? Did Rebekah send him over?"

Elena shook her head, and quickly relayed to them what Elijah had told her. "At least he'll be out of our hair for the plan. That's good."

"So, you weren't planning on killing him?" Klaus hedged, "Along with Rebekah and Kol? Only...you seemed willing to let him die before with Esther's spell."

"Speaking of which," Caroline interrupted, "What exactly makes you think Elijah will forgive you for killing the rest of his family?"

Elena looked away, "He probably won't."

"But what makes you think he'll give you the cure once he finds out what you did?" Caroline pressed, "What if he refuses to hand it over out of spite?"

"That's an entirely possible scenario," Elena replied calmly, "But I am willing to deal with the consequences of their deaths, whatever they may be. We won't get another chance like this if we give them the stake and go through with the deal. They'll destroy it, and then there won't be anything left that can get rid of them."

"We were...well, we weren't eavesdropping...but we heard you mention Katherine," Klaus remarked casually, "Why were you asking about her whereabouts?"

"Because Katherine thinks like Damon. She would be able to figure out where he's hidden this stake, but I have no idea how to get ahold of her."

"Did you try calling her?"

"I don't have her number."

"Maybe not...but I'm sure Stefan or Damon might have it," Caroline pursed her lips, "Well, I'm betting on Stefan." She nodded towards the stairs, "If both of them were kidnapped, then it's possible that they left their cell phones behind in their rooms."

"Okay," Elena agreed, "I'll go check." With that, she quickly blurred up the stairs and into Damon's room. Sure enough, his phone was lying on his bed. "Score," she muttered under her breath, hurriedly grabbing the phone and scrolling through his contacts. She didn't see Katherine's name, but she did crack a smile when she saw that Caroline was listed under the name 'Barbie.'

Tossing the phone back onto the bed, Elena then slipped into Stefan's room. His phone wasn't visible upon first sight, but she eventually found it on his dresser. After scrolling through the contacts for a few moments, she found what she was looking for. The name was merely listed as "KP" but she couldn't think of anyone else those initials would belong to.

Elena took a deep breath and then hit the call button. It rang for a long minute before a familiar voice answered in a low voice, "What? Stefan, I told you this number was for emergencies only so this better be—"

"It is an emergency...I need your help."

Silence.

"Elena?" Katherine sounded incredulous, "Well, I see rumors of your demise have been greatly exaggerated. Surviving that drop into the ocean is certainly something. How did you manage it? Did your knights in shining armor, otherwise known as the Salvatore Brothers, come to your rescue?"

"I didn't survive," Elena responded in a tight voice, and she could almost see the wheels spinning in Katherine's mind. "But that's not important right now," she hastily went on, explaining her deal with Rebekah. "So?" she prompted when she had finished, "What do you think? Where would Damon have hidden it?"

"Why are you asking me?" Katherine asked expressionlessly, "Contrary to what you may believe, I've never understood Damon. I don't understand what drives him, what motivates him, how he thinks, why he makes the decisions he does..."

"You know everything he's ever done, it's been for love," Elena snapped. "Katherine, this is important. If you won't do it for me or Damon, then do it for Stefan. I know you still care about him."

"Alright, alright," Katherine grumbled, "Let me think..." After a moment, she mused thoughtfully, "Well, if it was me...Then I would've hidden it in the last place anyone would expect to find something as important as this stake."

"Which would be where?"

"The fireplace."

Elena came to a standstill, her mouth involuntarily gaping open. "Oh my god," she breathed, "The fireplace! That makes perfect sense..." At that moment, however, there was suddenly a loud creak from the floorboards outside the room, followed by what sounded like something breaking. "Katherine, I have to go," she whispered, "Thank you for helping."

"Wait," Katherine blurted out, "Would you tell Stefan...tell him that I'd like to hear if he's alright."

"I will," Elena promised, hanging up the phone and silently tiptoeing out of the room. "Caroline?" she called out loud, "Tyler?"

Caroline screamed in pain.

Elena immediately rushed down the stairs, skidding to a halt at the bottom and looking around wildly. Her gaze fell on Caroline, who was slumped onto the ground in a heap. She dropped to her knees beside her friend, worriedly grasping her shoulders and giving her a small shake. "Care, can you hear me?" Elena looked towards the fireplace, dismayed to see that it looked ransacked. "Care? Hey, it's me. It's Elena. Come on, wake up..."

"Elena?" Caroline moaned, clutching her head as she opened her eyes. She blinked a few times before her expression abruptly morphed into one of rage. "Where is he?" she demanded, attempting to get to her feet. "I'm going to kill him!"

"Who?" Elena asked urgently, "Where's Tyler? What happened?"

"He attacked me! He said he was sorry, that he had to do something...then he knocked me out." She paused as she saw Elena frantically digging through the remains of the fireplace, "Er, what are you doing?"

"The stake," Elena turned to look at her friend in disbelief, "Tyler took it."

* * *

_*2 chapters left ;)_


	8. Finale: Part I

**A/N: **get ready for an exciting chapter!_  
_

* * *

_It's hard to know they're out there_  
_ It's hard to know that you still care_

* * *

"Alien abduction?"

"No."

"Voodoo?"

"No…"

"Oh, I know! A brain aneurysm!"

"Caroline!"

"What?" she snapped, launching herself onto the couch and burying her face into the nearest cushion with a muffled groan. "I'm just trying to think outside the box!"

Elena tapped her foot as she looked around her house—they had relocated from the Salvatore house in the hopes that Jeremy would be home from school and be able to help them—but unfortunately, he didn't appear to have come back yet. "Okay, wait here," Elena sighed, "I'll go get something to help us."

"Alcohol?" Caroline called after her hopefully, "Because we totally should've stolen some from Damon and Stefan's house…"

"We already left their house in a complete mess," Elena pointed out as she returned to the room, wheeling in a large whiteboard. "I think we've done enough damage."

"Is that your pictionary board?" Caroline demanded, sitting up as Elena came to a halt in front of the couch. "Why do we need that?"

"We need to think about this logically," Elena replied calmly, uncapping her marker and poised to write. "Alright, so what's a legitimate reason that Tyler did what he did?"

Caroline pursed her lips, "Well, you didn't like any of my other ideas."

"REAL ideas, Care. Come on."

"Okay, okay," she grumbled under her breath, "Er, compulsion?"

"Sure," Elena agreed, beginning to make a list. "Plus, there's also the sire-bond."

"But Klaus is dead...The sire bond doesn't exist anymore—and in any case, Tyler already broke that!"

"We're just considering all the possibilities. Now, what else?"

"A witch pulling the puppet strings?"

"A spell. Of course." Elena wrote it down, albeit reluctantly. "But that would require an actual witch…and the Mikealsens didn't mention one."

"Well, it's not like they would keep us updated on their playbook."

"What?"

"A playbook? Oh, it's what a football team uses to—"

"I know what it is," Elena interrupted with a small smile, "I used to date a football player too, remember? Anyway, that's besides the point. What else?"

Caroline examined the three ideas on the whiteboard contemplatively, "That's really all I can think of."

"Wow, you guys always jump to the most supernatural conclusion, don't you?" an irritated voice came from the kitchen, and Elena looked up in surprise. Jeremy strode into the room, looking vaguely disapproving. "How about a normal reason for once?"

"I didn't hear you come in," Elena started forward, but hesitated at the last minute. "How are you feeling? Hungover?"

"I'm fine," he answered shortly, not meeting her gaze. "But I overheard what you guys were talking about…you know, it could be something as simple as blackmail."

"Blackmail?" Caroline turned to look at Jeremy, "What do you mean? That Rebekah and Kol threatened Tyler?"

"No," Jeremy shrugged, "Maybe they threatened to kill you or Elena if Tyler didn't bring them the stake, so that's why he was forced to follow their orders."

"That sounds possible," Elena admitted, adding it to the list. "But I don't see why Tyler wouldn't just tell us, if that was the case. We could've worked it out together. "

"He's not exactly the first person who would've made a side deal with one of the Mikealsens without telling everyone else," Jeremy pointed out, glowering at Elena. "So, what's the plan?"

Caroline bit her lip, "What choice do we have? We have to go over there and make sure that they go through with their end of the deal."

Jeremy snorted, "What, just the two of you? Up against both Rebekah and Kol?"

"We don't have a choice, Jer...It's already been nearly 12 hours since we made the deal, and it's not like there's anyone else to help."

He shifted, "Well, that's not entirely true."

"What do you mean?"

"Guess who came to school today?"

Elena frowned, trying to discern her brother's tone of voice. "Um…I don't know? Is Matt back?"

Jeremy shook his head, and jogged into the kitchen to open the back door, "Check it out." A few seconds later, he returned with someone else in tow.

And it was the last person Elena expected to see.

* * *

_I could say it, but you won't believe me  
You say you do, but you don't deceive me_

* * *

"I have a feeling this is a really bad idea," Caroline muttered under her breath, "Like, really, really bad."

"Shh," Elena hissed under her breath, "We don't want them to hear us!"

"Too late," Kol announced, swinging the door open with a flourish. To Elena's consternation, he smiled at her, "Come to collect your Salvatores?"

Thrown off by his demeanor, she stammered, "You're actually handing them over?"

He leaned against the doorway and crossed his arms, a lazy grin flitting across his face. "You seem surprised that I'm not screwing you over on the terms of our deal."

"I just...I thought that since you...I mean, since Tyler..."

Kol stepped aside and gestured for them to enter the house, "Tyler brought us the stake, yes. And, luckily for you, I'm willing to look past the fact that you lied to me."

"Lied?" Elena repeated questioningly as she and Caroline were led through the hall, "About what?"

"You swore that Damon hadn't taken the stake," Kol reminded her, "But clearly you found it." They had reached the living room at this point, where they saw Tyler lounging in an armchair. However, he straightened when he saw them, looking slightly alarmed. "But I'm willing to let bygones be bygones," Kol went on, picking the stake up from the coffee table and carefully placing it into his pocket. "I think that's best, don't you?"

"You are?" Elena looked from Kol to Tyler, trying to understand what was going on, "Why?"

"Wouldn't you?"

"You and I don't exactly operate on the same wavelength, Kol."

"Elena, I already told you that you earned my respect with that stunt you pulled with Rebekah earlier," Kol answered easily. "And now that we have the stake, we'll just be on our way out of town. How does that sound?"

"We?" Caroline interjected, "Mind defining that for us?"

"Caroline," Tyler hastily stood up, "Let's just get Stefan and Damon and get out of here, alright?"

"Why should I listen to you?" she scowled, "After what you did?"

"Kol," Elena interrupted, "I believe Caroline asked you a question. Answer it." When he merely raised an eyebrow, she added, "Please."

He tilted his head, appearing to consider her request. "All of us," he responded finally, "Myself, Rebekah, and Elijah. We'll all leave."

Caroline and Elena exchanged glances.

"What?" Kol frowned, "Do you doubt my word?"

"Not at all," Caroline said sweetly, "But you seem to have left out a family member from that little equation."

For the first time, Kol looked caught off guard. "Excuse me?"

"You heard her," Elena raised her voice, "You failed to mention Klaus."

Silence.

Tyler shuffled forward, looking anxious. "Er, but he's dead...isn't he?"

Elena stared at him, just long enough to raise the tension within the room. Then her expression relaxed, "Of course he is. I just meant his body. It's in a coffin, you know. His burned remains. I figured the Mikealsens would want to take the coffin with them."

She could almost hear Tyler's sigh of relief.

"Oh the coffin," Kol cleared his throat, "Yes, we'll take that off your hands. Where is it?"

"Right outside," Caroline chirped, "Would you help me bring it in? Elena can go get Damon and Stefan off Rebekah's hands in the meantime."

Kol nodded quickly, "Yes, of course. Lead the way."

Elena smiled grimly to herself as she and Caroline passed each other, walking in opposite directions.

Everything was going according to plan.

* * *

_Was there one you saw too clearly?_  
_ Did they seem too real to you?_  
_ They were kids that I once knew...  
Now they're all dead hearts to you  
_

* * *

"Here it is," Caroline pointed, leading Kol towards the black van parked by the edge of the woods. "Hey Jer? Can you open up the back?"

"Sure thing." Jeremy hopped out of the driver's side, taking care to avoid looking at Kol as he passed them.

"You know," Caroline positioned herself so that she was blocking Kol's view of the van, "I don't think Damon and Stefan would appreciate you flirting with Elena."

Kol smirked, "I'm not flirting, love."

"Then why are you being so nice to her?"

His smirk broadened, "I happen to get a kick out of pissing off Rebekah and Elijah, that's all." A cocky look flitted across his expression, "Why? Are you jealous?"

She smiled at him coyly, "Do you want me to be jealous?" She stepped towards him, at the same time snaking her arm to her back pocket. Kol merely watched as she brushed her lips past his cheek and whispered in his ear, "Do you like being a tease?" Then, before he could respond, she whipped out a pocketknife and stabbed it into his neck.

Kol shouted in rage as he stumbled back from her, his hand covering the blood sprouting from his neck. "You bitch! What do you think you're—" He stopped as he realized the wound wasn't healing, "WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?"

Jeremy flung open the back doors of the van then, and Bonnie stepped out, her eyes flashing. "The knife was laced with a compound similar to white oak ash," she informed him coldly, "And it temporarily renders your immortality useless." She turned to Caroline, just as Kol slumped to the ground, clearly unconscious. "Did you get the blood?"

"Yup," Caroline said proudly, handing over the knife. "Is the spell ready?"

Bonnie nodded, pulling a piece of parchment out of her bag and laying it onto the ground. "_Partum prosapia nemus," _she murmured, letting gravity pull the drops of blood off the knife. They hit the parchment, but weren't absorbed into it. "Alright, now for Rebekah's blood..."

"Got it!" Elena suddenly appeared in their midst, grinning as she held up the now-infamous necklace. "Rebekah took the bait just like we predicted."

"Great," Bonnie took the necklace and pressed it into the parchment so that the hidden pin on the back of the pendant pierced the paper and oozed out several droplets of blood. "_Duco iunctio."_

As she continued the spell, Jeremy shifted closer to Elena. "How are Damon and Stefan?"

"Still unconscious," Elena whispered back, "I undid the shackles and funneled some blood into their systems, but I left them in that room. Rebekah is unconscious there, too." She nodded at Kol's body, "Just like him. Did Bonnie say how long they'll be out of it?"

"The ash won't last long, especially since it's just an imitation compound," Jeremy said under his breath, "Hopefully this spell doesn't take much time..."

"Look," Caroline said excitedly, pointing at the parchment. "It's working!"

The two different blood streams began criss-crossing, finally forming a circle. "It's done," Bonnie breathed, "They are connected. Where's the stake?"

"Kol has it," Elena said, hurrying over to his body and hesitantly turning him onto his side so that she could fish it out of his pocket. "Alright, so when I stake him, he'll go up in flames?"

"And the same thing will happen to Rebekah," Bonnie confirmed, sounding slightly out of breath. "Go ahead, before the ash wears off."

Elena took a deep breath and held the stake above Kol's heart.

"NO!"

Startled, she looked up to see Tyler standing at the threshold of the house, looking stricken.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

"Do it!" Bonnie shouted, her eyes narrowing as she held her arms out in Tyler's direction. "I'll hold him off—do it now!" As she focused her power on her new target, the sky darkened and thunder rumbled threateningly across the horizon.

"He's not Elijah!" Caroline yelled, correctly interpreting Elena's hesitation. "Just because he said he'd honor your deal and just because he was planning to keep his word—that doesn't negate from all the evil he's done!"

The wind picked up speed and began swirling around them, making it hard to see or hear anything. Tyler staggered forward, and Bonnie let out a scream of curses (or it might've been a spell) just as the heavens opened up, pelting them all with hail.

"Elena!"

"Jeremy?" She tried to turn around to look in his direction, but a flash of lightning illuminated someone else that had just arrived on the scene, and she froze. "Oh god..."

Elijah came to a stop on the edge of the scene, fury and horror battling for dominance across his expression. "ELENA! What are you doing? Stop—I beg you, stop this!"

Completely disoriented, she briefly wondered why he couldn't come closer. One look in Bonnie's direction, however, explained things. Bonnie seemed to have established some sort of force-field around them, keeping everyone who wasn't already in the immediate vicinity at bay.

"What the hell are you waiting for?" Jeremy got in her face then, his hand closing around Elena's on the stake. "Bonnie's powers are weakening, look at her!"

"Elena, please!"

She turned to look at Elijah, intending to tell him that she was sorry—but this was something that she had to do. The words dried in the back of throat, however, when she was what he was holding. "Is that..."

"The cure!" He pleaded with her, "I have the elixir! Put an end to this and it's yours!"

Elena could feel tears welling up in her eyes as Jeremy let go of her hand, clearly unwilling to make this decision for her. More lightning streaked across the sky, and the thunder became deafening. "I'm sorry," she whispered, knowing that Elijah would be able to hear her. Tears streamed down her face, "I'm so sorry."

With a sickening squelch, the stake entered Kol's chest.

He went up in flames instantly, as did the parchment with Bonnie's spell. A shout from inside the house confirmed that the same had happened with Rebekah's body. Elijah gasped out, a hand covering his chest as he fell to his knees.

"What have you done?" Tyler roared from the other side of the circle, clutching his chest as he stumbled onto the ground.

Bonnie got to her feet, her eyes nearly a charcoal black. "It will be undone," she intoned, "_Is ero reverto!_" With that, she flung her arms out wide, with one hand pointing towards the van. The coffin came flying out and landed with a thud in the midst, the lid opening of its own volition. "_REVERTO_!" she cried out, her arms making a scissoring movement as she whirled around to point at Tyler's body.

Tyler yelled in pain, his eyes flashing gold as his body reared up as though a powerful force was pulling at it. "Tyler!" Caroline began running forward, even as he fell back onto the ground with a groan.

The hail and wind was almost blinding at this point, and Elena held a hand up in front of her face to shield herself. A lightening bolt over the Mikealsen's house illuminated the doorway, and Elena's heart soared. "Damon!" she sprinted forward, her vampire speed taking over her instincts. She blurred straight into his arms, and he caught her in a tight embrace, closing his eyes as she buried her face into his chest. "You're okay!"

"In a manner of speaking," he winced slightly, pulling back to look her over. "I woke up to see Rebekah burning to ashes across the room." He paused, the corner of his mouth lifting, "One of the more pleasant sights I've woken up to in my lifetime, to be honest." Then his expression sobered, "How did you manage this?"

"Bonnie came back," Elena said by way of explanation, her hands quickly brushing along his chest as she checked for bruises. "Where's Stefan?"

"Still unconscious," Damon stopped her movements by catching her wrist, "You're changing the subject. What happened?"

Elena looked up to meet his gaze, "Bonnie had to tap into dark magic to give us this edge over the Originals. She did warn me there would be a price to pay...That fate would intervene..."

Damon's grip around her wrist tightened, "What price did you have to pay?"

"The cure for my humanity," she answered quietly, "Elijah showed up before I had the chance to stake Kol...He offered me a deal: the elixir if I spared his family."

"Elena..."

"It's okay," she whispered, cutting him off with a searing kiss. "It's my choice," she murmured, her lips moving heatedly against his as he backed her into the doorway. She moaned out loud as his hands roamed her body, seeking the same release and friction that she was craving.

Behind them, the storm abruptly died down, coinciding with the last of Bonnie's energy. She wearily slumped onto the ground, completely spent. Jeremy worriedly knelt down next to her, "Are you alright?"

The force-field finally broke, and Elijah surged forward towards Kol's remains. "No," he whispered in a broken voice, "This can't be happening!" He looked wildly towards Bonnie, "Rebekah?"

"They were connected," Bonnie whispered faintly, "Rebekah is dead."

Tyler regained consciousness at that moment, peering at Caroline in confusion. "What happened?" he asked groggily, "Care?"

"Tyler?" She grabbed onto his shirt hopefully, "Is it really you? You're not still Klaus, right?"

"No, he's not."

Everyone turned around as a new voice broke into the silence. Klaus daintily swung his legs over the edge of the coffin and hopped onto the ground, his gaze taking in the wide array of bystanders. Then his eyes alighted on Elijah and he held an arm out to him, "Hello, brother."


	9. Finale: Part II

_We've only just begun_  
_ Hypnotized by drums_  
_ Until forever comes_  
_ You'll find us chasing the sun_

* * *

**I.**

* * *

Stefan winced, and Elena instantly pulled the washcloth away from the cut on his cheek. "Sorry," she murmured, "I'll try to be more gentle." She gave him a small smile as she pressed the cloth to the gash across his forehead. "It doesn't look that bad, you know…It kinda makes you look badass."

He reached up with his own hand to grab hold of the washcloth. "I can do that," he said quietly, "Don't worry about it."

"No, I want to," Elena insisted, and Stefan dropped his hand back to his lap. She wrung out the cloth in the bowl of hot water beside them and then reapplied it with a softer touch, "How come it's taking so long to heal?"

"Too much vervain in my system," he answered, resting his head tiredly against the wall. "I need blood to flush it out."

Elena had been kneeling next to him on the floor, but she began to get to her feet. "I can go ask Elijah and Klaus if they have any blood in the house—"

"No," Stefan said hoarsely, grabbing her wrist and pulling her back down next to him. "Can't we just go home?"

She sent a paranoid look towards the door, "No, they asked us to stay…something about having a civilized conversation over dinner and there being enough bloodshed for one day."

"So they're really dead," Stefan stated, his gaze lingering on the burnt corpse on the other side of the room. "It's hard to believe."

"Well, believe it," Elena replied heavily, moving to sit down next to him. She drew her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around her legs. "You should've seen Elijah's face when he saw what I…when he realized…" She shook her head, remorse filling her expression. "Stefan, did I do the right thing? And if I did, then why do I feel like this?"

"You did what had to be done," he responded slowly, "And I'm sure that on some level, Elijah understands that you were just protecting the people you love. As for why you feel guilty, it's because your empathy has been amplified. You identify with Elijah, more than you did when you were human."

"Yeah," she muttered moodily, "That must be it."

"It's not like he's completely alone," Stefan reminded her, "He still has Klaus."

Elena pursed her lips, "When Bonnie showed up at my house, rambling about how she had put Klaus' spirit into Tyler's body—I thought she was kidding. I couldn't believe that she would've done something like that and just LEFT town without telling us!"

"She must've figured that Klaus couldn't cause too much trouble while he was hiding in Tyler's body...I guess she didn't know that Rebekah and Kol would be hellbent on getting that stake back."

Elena turned to look at him incredulously, "Are you seriously taking her side on this? You and Damon almost died, Stefan! Not to mention that Klaus was pretending to be Tyler while he was with Caroline—do you realize how WRONG that is?"

"I'm not taking her side," Stefan explained patiently, "What she did was wrong, no question about that. But don't tell me that you don't understand why she did what she did. To save her mother's life? To ensure that her friends didn't die? You might've done the same, if you were in her shoes."

Elena didn't say anything for a minute, but she could feel Stefan's eyes on her. "I'm not angry with her," she replied finally, "And I do understand her motives. I'm just saying, she shouldn't have left us in the dark about what she had done."

"At least she came back," Stefan offered, "Speaking of which, why did she decide to return? Guilty conscience?"

Elena raised an eyebrow and then fished into her pocket for something. Stefan peered at her curiously when she pulled out an object and laid it onto the palm of her hand.

"Er, lipstick?"

"I used it early this morning to write on Jeremy's mirror," she told him, "And apparently Bonnie had some spell in place where she could use his mirror to check up on him. When she saw what I had written, she realized that Jeremy was spinning out of control—so I guess she actually came back to for him...But when we filled her in on what was happening, she decided to help."

"Is Jeremy alright?"

"Yeah, he's waiting out in the dining room. Like I said, Klaus won't let anyone leave."

Stefan sighed, "I guess we're really stuck with them now."

"With Klaus? Yeah, I guess so."

"The stake has been reduced to ashes, and we know for sure that Klaus is the origin of our bloodline, so killing him would the end of…all…of us."

"Except for me," Elena tried to smile to lighten the mood, "Since I died with some random vampire's blood in my system."

Stefan looked surprised, "Damon didn't tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

"I thought you knew," he frowned, "Meredith didn't tell you either?"

Elena straightened, "Stefan. What are you talking about?"

"It was…" he hesitated, "The only vampire blood Meredith had in stock at the time was Damon's blood."

"Oh," Elena said faintly, "I didn't know."

* * *

**II.**

* * *

Damon was waiting for her when she exited the room, and she came to a halt when she saw him. "I thought we were all meeting in the dining room?"

"We are," he held an arm out to her, "I thought we could walk over together."

"Okay," she acquiesced, linking her arm together with his. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye as they walked down the hallway, noticing that he had fully buttoned his shirt. "Did your wounds already finish healing? Stefan still looks pretty beat up...For some reason, Rebekah only focused on slicing up his face."

"That would be because she was in love with him," Klaus suddenly appeared in front of them, clearly having overheard their conversation. "Damaging someone's face is more of a personal attack. It means she was deeply angry with him for how he had treated her, but she couldn't bring herself to truly hurt him. The high dosage of vervain that's preventing him from healing shows that she wanted him to feel powerless and weak, the way that being in love with him made her feel."

Elena gaped at him, "How do you know that?"

"Because I know how my little sister thinks," Klaus held the door to his left open, and gestured for them to follow him. "The dining room is this way. Everyone else is already seated. Where's Stefan?"

"Still back there," Elena answered uncertainly, "He said he would catch up. I was actually coming to ask you if you had any blood I could take to him?"

"My caterers will take care of it," Klaus said dismissively, snapping his fingers at someone walking past. "You. Take several packages of blood to Mr. Salvatore. He's in the room at the end of the hall. Make sure he drinks all of it, and then escort him to the dining room. Understood?"

Damon frowned, "Are you sending him human blood?"

"Don't worry, it's not enough to trigger a relapse," Klaus smiled, though his expression remained oddly sinister. "Come along."

Elena's eyes widened when she saw the large dining table in the middle of the room. Elijah was sitting at the head on one end, and she assumed that Klaus would take the head on the other end. On the left side, Caroline was seated in between Tyler (restored to his rightful body) and Bonnie. Jeremy was sitting on the other side of the table, next to three empty chairs.

Damon squeezed her hand lightly and then graciously pulled back the chair next to Jeremy so that she could sit next to her brother. "Thank you," Elena murmured, smiling at Damon as he took the seat to her left. "Jer, you okay?"

"Fine," he answered shortly, keeping his eyes trained on the plate in front of him. "What about you?" He looked up at her, his expression softening. "I'm sorry about those things I said to you last night. You're all I have left, Elena. Sometimes it just gets to be too much, you know?"

"I know," she said quietly, "And you don't have to apologize. Some of those things you said to me—they were true. Look, I don't want you to keep all that bottled up inside, Jeremy. I want you to feel like you can tell me anything, alright? I'm your sister, and I want to be able to be there for you."

"Such a beautiful family moment," Klaus drawled, ignoring Elena's glare as he took his seat. "You know, Jeremy, you and I have something in common now."

"Oh yeah?" Jeremy scowled, "What would that be?"

He took a sip from his wine glass and swirled it around thoughtfully before answering. "Thanks to your sister here, we each only have one remaining family member left."

"Niklaus," Elijah said warningly, speaking for the first time. "This is meant to be a civilized discussion, per your own terms."

"I'm merely pointing out the facts," Klaus replied with false politeness, "I'm sure Elena would agree."

Elena gritted her teeth, "You want to talk facts? Fine. I might've killed Kol and Rebekah today, but let's not forget everything that you've done—You've been either directly or indirectly responsible for the deaths of Isobel, John, Jenna, your own father, and god knows who else. Your mother killed Alaric, and your sister killed, oh yeah, ME! So don't you _dare_ look my brother in the eye and talk about remaining family members."

Damon tossed back the rest of his wine, "Well, there goes the Peace talks."

Caroline leaned forward, her eyes flashing. "Yeah, Klaus, are you trying to make yourself out to be an innocent bystander in all this? You turned Tyler into a HYBRID, then took over his body which is, like, a total violation! And Rebekah didn't only try to kill Elena—when that car went over the bridge, she knew she was sentencing Matt to death, too. MATT, who was nothing but nice to her at that stupid Ball."

"Not to mention that you had the nerve to lay a hand on Caroline while you were pretending to be me," Tyler snapped, "Dude, that's seriously messed up!"

Elijah heaved a sigh, lifting his glass towards the waiter. "More wine, please. And keep it coming. Thank you."

"We didn't sleep together!" Klaus hissed at Tyler, "And clearly your little girlfriend doesn't know you as well as you think she does, if she couldn't tell the difference between me and you!"

Caroline's mouth dropped open, "How dare you—"

"Enough!" Bonnie bellowed, and everyone fell silent at her sudden outburst. "Alright," she said in a calmer voice, "The only thing we have established so far is that a lot of innocent and not-so-innocent people have died along the way of everyone's quest for revenge and power. But that doesn't mean that we can't all come to an understanding."

Jeremy lifted his head wearily, "Do you even think that's possible at this point? So much has happened...sometimes there's a line you cross, and there's no looking back."

Her eyes narrowed, "Of course it's possible. After all, we've all forgiven Damon, haven't we? I mean, this is the guy that fed on and abused Caroline for WEEKS, and has killed no fewer than Matt's sister, Tyler's uncle, and my own mother." Her gaze swung around, "Am I missing anyone important?"

"You forgot Lexi," Stefan announced, and everyone turned around to look at him as he entered the room and took a seat next to Damon. "Oh, and our dear nephew Zach, of course."

Damon raised an eyebrow, "Well, when you say it like that..."

"But I can't let you take all the credit for the deaths in this town," Stefan went on, accepting the glass of wine that was handed to him. "Seeing as how I lost the bet to Damon about who would be responsible for turning your mother into a vampire," he said to Bonnie, "But Damon decided to go ahead and do the deed, anyway."

Elena frowned, looking between Stefan and Damon in confusion, "What?"

"Oh," Stefan snapped his fingers, "And Andie! We can't forget about her."

Bonnie closed her eyes briefly, and took a deep breath to calm her temper. "My point is, despite the mounting death toll, we've all found a way to co-exist more or less peacefully."

"I agree," Elena said, to everyone's surprise. "I don't think we really have any choice in the matter, other than to co-exist."

* * *

**III.**

* * *

"Are you sure you don't want a ride back?" Jeremy asked, frowning down at Elena from the driver's side of the van. "I don't like the idea of you staying behind with...them."

Bonnie leaned towards her from the passenger seat, "Do you really trust them?"

"Yeah, I do," Elena tried to smile, "Just get Stefan and Damon home. I'll meet you guys there as soon as I can."

"Alright," Jeremy nodded, revving up the engine. "Be careful, sis."

As the car disappeared down the road, Elena became aware of footsteps approaching. She turned around to see Caroline walking towards her, "Hey, I didn't know you were still here. Where's Tyler?"

"I sent him back home—well, to our hideout," she amended, sighing. "I can't believe I had to give him directions...and that this entire time, I was living with Klaus." She shuddered, crossing her arms. "God, Elena, am I a complete idiot for not noticing?"

"Come here," Elena reached out and pulled Caroline into her arms for a hug. "First of all, you did notice...remember, you kept telling me that Tyler was acting weird? There's no way you could've known that he wasn't himself, I mean who would guess something like that?" She shook her head, "Don't blame yourself. Klaus was just trying to get under your skin when he said those things. Even Tyler knows that it wasn't your fault."

"Yeah, I guess," she muttered, absentmindedly scuffing her boot into the dirt. "I just wish..."

"And now that Bonnie is back, maybe we can figure out some sort of memory spell or something for the Founder's Council?" Elena suggested, "And then we can make them forget everything Alaric told them about you and Tyler."

Caroline smiled in spite of herself, "Two years ago, could you ever see yourself saying that sentence out loud?" The corners of her mouth turned down, "I guess this is our life now, huh?"

"Yeah," Elena shielded her eyes, watching as Elijah and Klaus exited the house with a coffin for Kol. "Like Jeremy said, sometimes there's no going back."

Elijah paused when he saw her, confusion flitting across his expression. He said something to his brother, then called to her. "How about a ride home?"

"Go ahead," Caroline said to her, keeping her eyes on Klaus. "There's something I want to do, first. I'll talk to you later."

"Okay," Elena agreed, squeezing her friend's shoulder gently. "Call if you need anything." Then she blurred towards Elijah's car, smiling at him when he held the passenger door open for her.

Klaus didn't speak, choosing to remain silent as he began loading Kol's remains into the coffin. He looked up, however, when Caroline's shadow loomed over him. "Can I help with that?"

"I've got it, thanks," he responded under his breath, "Go home, Caroline."

"No," she said forcefully, standing her ground. "You don't get to pretend to be all self-righteous, not after what you did!"

He abruptly got to his feet, whirling around to glare at her. "Did I ever hurt you?" Klaus hissed, getting into her face. "I've done nothing but treat you with kindness and respect, Caroline!"

"Respect?" She repeated incredulously, placing her hands on her hips. "Letting me believe that you were Tyler, manipulating me like that—how could you do that to me? That's not how you treat someone you supposedly care about!"

"Well, seeing as how I'm leaving town, you don't have to worry about me impeding on your epic love affair with Tyler anymore," Klaus snapped, "I have nothing left tying me back to Mystic Falls anymore. Not even you."

Caroline crossed her arms, "Do you even know why I stayed behind to talk to you?"

Klaus finished clearing the ground of Kol's remains, and shut the coffin with a loud thud. "Do enlighten me, love. I don't have all day."

"I wanted to give you a chance to explain yourself," she said crisply, causing him to stop in his tracks. "You saved my life twice, and that's not the sort of thing a girl forgets."

He turned around to look at her, "Maybe I wanted to see what it was like to face you everyday and not see the contempt in your eyes. To touch you and not have you flinch away in disdain. Maybe I wanted to see what it felt like to have your love in return. Ever think of that?"

She shook her head, "It wasn't real. This past week? None of it was real...You understand that, right?"

"I know," Klaus agreed, putting the coffin down and walking towards her. When she didn't move away, he hesitantly reached out and touched her shoulder. She kept her face expressionless, knowing that he was watching her carefully. He came closer, until they were inches apart. "Do you think it could ever be real?"

"I love Tyler," Caroline said quietly, but she still didn't pull away. Instead, she closed her eyes as she felt Klaus' lips brush her forehead. "I should go," she whispered, "I just wanted to say goodbye."

He nodded, letting his hand drop from her shoulder. "I'm sorry," he told her, "For what it's worth, I'm sorry for what I did to you." Klaus stepped back and looked at her seriously, "There's something to be said for living for an eternity, Caroline. If you ever want someone to show you the world, come and find me."

She hesitated, but gave him a small smile, "I'll be sure to keep that in mind." Then she quickly leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, "Goodbye, Klaus."

He stared after her as she blurred away into the distance, "Goodbye, Caroline."

* * *

**IV.**

* * *

"Where will you go?" Elena asked as Elijah pulled into the driveway of the Salvatore house. "Do you know yet?"

"I want to bury my sister and brother back in our homeland," Elijah answered, keeping one hand on the steering wheel as he peered up at the house in front of them. "But after that, there's no set plan in motion."

Elena nodded, keeping quiet as she tried to figure out what to say. "I'm sorry," she said finally, "For everything."

"Don't apologize," Elijah turned to look at her, "I know you had your reasons for what you did."

She bit her lip, "So you don't hate me?"

"No more than I despise myself for my own actions," Elijah reached between them and produced a broken vial. "I shouldn't have let my emotions get the better of me. If I didn't, then the elixir would still be intact and you might've had a chance at becoming human again."

"It's not your fault," Elena smiled as she took the vial out of his hand and put it back down. "I'm glad you forced me to make a decision about my vampirism. I mean, someone had to."

"But this isn't what you wanted."

"True," she acknowledged, "I never wanted to become a vampire, and sometimes when I think about everything that's happened, it still hurts to know what I've lost."

"Elena..."

"But I've also gained something else."

Elijah looked at her curiously, "Which is?"

"Something that Caroline said to me earlier," Elena said thoughtfully, turning back around to look at the Salvatore house. "An eternity to spend with the one I love."

"Ah, the proverbial silver lining." He tilted his head towards the front door, "Come on, I'll walk you out." As they slowly walked up to the porch together, he finally turned to face her. "I guess this is goodbye, Elena."

"I guess so," she agreed, holding her hand out. "Thank you, Elijah. For everything."

He shook her hand, acknowledging her sentiments with a smile. "I daresay our paths will cross again sometime in the future. Until then, good luck with everything." She nodded, and Elijah backed away. "If you ever need anything," he called over his shoulder before getting into the car, "Don't hesitate to ask."

* * *

**V.**

* * *

"Um, what's going on?"

Stefan looked up from his duffel bag as Elena entered the house, and he gave her a tight smile. "Hey, I was waiting for you to get home."

She frowned, "Are you...going somewhere?"

"Yeah, he is," a familiar voice said, and Elena looked up in surprise to see Katherine standing by the fireplace with Damon. "You really made a mess of the place, by the way," Katherine went on, "Quite rude, if you ask me."

Stefan shot a glare in Katherine's direction before turning back to look at Elena. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure," she said suspiciously, following him into the kitchen. As soon as the door swung shut behind them, she turned on him. "What the hell is she doing here? And where are you packing off to?"

"Katherine told me you called her," Stefan started, "Pretty good idea, by the way. I'm glad she was able to help you find the stake."

"You're avoiding the question."

He took a deep breath, "Damon and I had a deal. If and when you made a decision between us, then the other person would leave town."

Elena stared at him blankly, "I don't understand. Why are you leaving? What does Katherine have to do with any of this?"

"She came to make sure that you managed to save the day," Stefan tried to smile at her, "I told her you always do."

"Stefan, no one is making you LEAVE."

"Elena, listen to me," he grasped both of her hands within his, "That night on the bridge? You chose to come back to Mystic Falls out of obligation—"

"That's not true," Elena snapped, wrenching herself out of his grip. "How the hell can you say that? I've never stopped loving you, not even after the hell you put me through this past year."

Stefan sighed, "I know. And I'm sorry." He smiled at her sadly, "Even you have to admit, you and I are like broken glass, Elena. Every time one of us tries to put the pieces back together, we just end up getting hurt." He stepped forward to embrace her, and she closed her eyes as she rested her head on his shoulder. "I never stopped loving you either," he whispered, "But the time for us has been and gone, Elena."

She pulled back, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I never meant for any of this to happen, Stefan. I didn't mean to fall in love with Damon, I didn't mean to come in between you two, I didn't mean to ruin everything."

"Shh," Stefan wiped away her tears with his thumb, "I know. It's okay, I know." He rested both hands on her shoulders, and waited till she met his gaze before he began speaking. "You're going to be fine, Elena. Toeing the fine line between control and bloodlust has always been Damon's forte, and I know he'll teach you everything he knows. He loves you, and he cares about you. I know he'll never let anything happen to you."

"Will I..." she swallowed, "Will I ever see you again?"

He pulled her forward, resting his forehead against hers. "Six months till graduation, Elena. You better be sure as hell that I'll be back to see you walk across that stage for the first time."

The door opened at that moment, and Katherine walked in, "Ready to go?"

"Yeah," Stefan squeezed Elena's hand one last time, "I'll just go say bye to Damon, then we can leave."

Katherine nodded, holding the door open for him. "So," she said to Elena once they were alone, "I was right."

"About what?"

"About the stake...about your feelings for Damon...about a lot of things, really."

Elena rolled her eyes.

"It's always been Damon for you, hasn't it?" Katherine asked suddenly, "You always knew."

"What are you talking about?"

Katherine studied her expression shrewdly, "You didn't ask Stefan to stay."

Elena frowned, "Yes, I did. I told him he didn't have to leave—"

"But you didn't ASK him to stay," Katherine pressed, moving towards Elena. "Tell me something- what if it had been Damon who chose to leave today? Would you have asked him to stay?"

Elena could only stare at her wordlessly.

"Yeah," Katherine backed off with a smug look, "That's what I thought."

"Kat, you ready to go?" Stefan called from the living room, "I'll be out by the car."

"Coming," she called back, before turning around to face Elena. "Well, I'm off," she said, smiling mysteriously. "I hope you figure everything out Elena, and that you find everything you're looking for."

_'...want you to get everything you're looking for.' _

Elena's eyes widened.

_'...but right now I want you to forget that this happened.'_

"Elena?"

She blinked, startled to see Katherine standing in front of her instead of Damon. "Yeah, um..." She shook her head, disoriented. "Take care of Stefan, alright?"

"I will," Katherine responded slowly, "See you around, Elena."

* * *

**VI.**

* * *

"They're gone," Damon told her when she finally emerged from the kitchen ten minutes later, "What have you been up to in there? Hiding out?"

"No," Elena tried to smile at him, "Just thinking."

He picked up on her mood instantly, "What's wrong? Upset about Stefan leaving? Don't worry, he said he would be back soon."

"I know, that's not..." She sighed, moving across the room so that she could sit next to him on the couch. "Why didn't you ever tell me? After all this time?"

"Tell you what?"

Elena met his gaze, "That we met first."

Damon immediately looked away, his shoulders tensing. "I see the last of your memories came back."

"It was only a matter of time."

"True."

She tilted her head at him, "Why do you Compel people not to remember when you do something selfless? Why do you try to hide the real you?"

"Elena..."

"I hated you, you know," she interrupted, "When you showed up in Mystic Falls...the way you seemed to treat everyone like chess pieces that you could just push around for your own personal gain."

"I know."

She ran her fingers through her hair, "And now I come to learn that the first time we met—the REAL first time—you just...you wanted me to be happy. To fall in love. To live my life the way I wanted to. A complete stranger wanted those things for me. Why?"

Damon sighed, shrugging his shoulders. "I don't know, Elena. There was just something about you that night...your innocence, your purity. Just the complete opposite of Katherine, the complete opposite of what I was looking for. I don't know. It just...spoke to me."

Elena let a soft smile cross her lips as she reached out to cover his hand with hers, their fingers interlacing. "A love that consumes me," she whispered, and their gazes instantly locked. "Passion...adventure...danger," she murmured each word in between kisses, and felt Damon smile against her lips in response.

"Did you find everything you were looking for?"

"Yeah," she closed her eyes in pleasure as his lips grazed down her neck, "I think I did." She brought his mouth back up to meet hers, and squealed when he suddenly swept her up in his arms and blurred them up the stairs into his room. She smiled up at him as he lowered her gently onto the bed, and she curved two of her fingers around his wrist to pull him down towards her. "There's something else you didn't tell me," she said to him as he held himself above her, "Something important."

His brow furrowed slightly, "What?"

She placed a hand on her chest, directly over her unbeating heart. "Your blood," she looked up at him, "Meredith used your blood to save my life. I just...I wanted to thank you for that."

He shook his head, leaning down place a light kiss on her lips. "I'll always save you," he whispered, "I love you, Elena."

"You're in my veins, in my bloodstream," Elena said softly, "You'll always be a part of me, Damon. I love you, too."

* * *

_When Daylight's fading_  
_ We're gonna play in the dark_  
_ 'Til it's golden again_  
_ And now it feels so amazing_  
_ Can see you coming_  
_ And We'll never grow old again_  
**_-Chasing the Sun_**

* * *

**fin.**

* * *

*****thank you to everyone who read and reviewed this fic! As of right now, I don't plan on watching the next season of TVD so this is probably my last canon fic...but I will definitely do more AU/AH fics in the future :)

Currently, I've just started a Castle fic (seriously, I can't believe I haven't been watching this show in the past four years!) so if you're into the Caskett fandom, be sure to check it out ;) xoxo


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